The Real History Behind The Davinci Code

Rating:
Summary: "After reading "The Da Vinci Code" you must read this...!"
Review: "The Real History Behind The Da Vinci Code", by Sharan Newman, New York, Berkley Books, 2005 - ISBN 0-425-20012-4, pbk, 337 pp., authored by a medievalist teacher & novelist who provides an alphabetized commentary upon 70 distinct peoples, places, events, symbolisms and physical things discussed in Dan Brown's novel "The Da Vinci Code". Newman strives to separate truths from the fabrications and, if feasible, facts from the legends but warns us her book is a 'companion' to the aforementioned.

"The Da Vinci Code" has an abstruse amount of fascinating literal chronicaled details within the text of a fictional novel and this makes it nearly impossible or at least a most challenging and difficult task to reconcile veracity between fabricated or legendary data with unpolluted materiality. In her book she points out errors and improbabilities in "The Da Vinci Code" but additionally clarifies and gives colloquy or discourse on legendary and factual material and provides a substantial list of books for Recommended Reading with footnotes to source material.

Newman gives an authoritative commentary on the people, places and times referenced in "The Da Vinci Code" in an illuminating and affirmative fashion. The author's speciality of medieval research gives life and sheds considerable truths and a lot of understanding to the intrigues, trivia and extraordinary events chronicaled in Dan Brown's novel "The Da Vinci Code" (which I'm told is to be made into a movie). Sharan's book has worthy inveiglements as inclusion of modest number of old medieval prints, etc., and the author's occasional whimsical sense of humor is appealing. I was disappointed not to find an index of the 70 alphabetized subjects nor a listing of the illustrations. Being alphabetized the book can be read in any order desired and has excellent material readily accessed. Its potent!