The Rough Guide to The Da Vinci Code: History, Legends, Locations

Rating:
Summary: This Book is the Holy Grail!
Review: Everyone wants to know the truth about what Dan Brown writes in The Da Vinci Code, and I can think of no better way to fill yourself in on the background than to read this book. It has stuff on the sacred feminine and Mary Magdalene, on early Christianity and how the Bible was edited, on Leonardo da Vinci's paintings such as The Last Supper and the Mona Lisa, and the true history of the Templars and the Priory of Sion.
It also has location guides to Paris, London, Edinburgh, Rome, New York and Jerusalem, with plenty of maps.
Plus reviews of books and websites where you can continue your investigations, and a really helpful glossary on everything from corporal mortification to the Fibonacci Sequence.
I got a copy of this book over in England the same day it was delivered into the bookstores. It is really fantastic. And at this price I can afford to give copies as presents to everyone I know. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

Rating:
Summary: poorly written, inconsistent
Review: For a book that is criticizing Dan Brown's accuracy, I found this book poorly written and containing many mistakes. Did they rush to publish this before editing? Mistakes such as claiming that the first crusades were ordered by Urban II in 1145, or claiming that "symbology" is not a real word. At other times sentences and phrases are so jumbled that you cannot understand the meaning after re-reading 3 or 4 times.
I love Rough Guides, but this book was poorly edited and I expect better from this publisher.

Rating:
Summary: Really useful and fascinating book
Review: I found this Rough Guide to The Da Vinci Code the best book about the questions raised by Dan Brown's thriller. In fact it is a lot more than that -- it is a complete pocket reference book to the basic themes and ideas and facts of early Christianity, ancient history, goddess worship, the sacred feminine, and so on -- with a comprehensive glossary and lists for further reading and informative websites. I did notice one or two typographical mistakes, but why quibble? This book has meat!

Rating:
Summary: This book gave me all the background stuff I was looking for
Review: I had so many questions after reading The Da Vinci Code, and this book, which I just picked up in Britain before flying home, gave me all the background information I was looking for. I especially valued the chapters on Leonardo, the Gnostics and the Sacred Feminine, which opened my eyes to so many things in such a clear, concise and well written way. And there is a great glossary, which itself is like a mini guide to The Da Vinci Code. And really helpful maps and location guides to places which feature in the book, like Paris and London, and even Jerusalem. What a thoughtfully organized and comprehensive book this is.