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Summary: Grail Story for the non Non-Fiction Reader
Review: If your not a NON FICTION book reader and not aquinted with the recent historical, anthropological, and scientific discoveries of the Holy Grail/Jesus Mystery throughout the last 20 years, Da Vinci code does a nice job concising this information for you wrapped around a good story.This book may surely turn off the die-hard Religious types out there but they too should read this with an open mind. If the book is offensive to you in anyway, there is a good 'out' for you to take, just remember to classify it as fiction in your mind and that should make it a bit easier for you to read. The story is very good where the action never lets up. The author does a good job of incorporation fact within his fictional characters. The characters are developed well and the story builds to a climax. The book is a good way to bring a conterversial topic to the mainstream.
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Summary: History buffs of the world, unite and read!
Review: If, like me, your idea of great television is the Discovery or History channels, you'll love this book. I won't go so far as to say that Brown weaves together his fact and fiction "flawlessly", but he does it in the best interest of an entertaining read, and really, isn't that what we're here for?
As other reviewers have mentioned, this book is a murder mystery whose clues all involve a secret society's beliefs about the Holy Grail. The plot is presented in "real time", with the more complicated explanations taking the form of flashbacks to the university classes taught by the main character, Robert Langdon. It was in these flashbacks that I felt the book bogged down the most, as the students' dialogue invariably consisted of the "3 Ws" - "Wow!", "Whoa!", and "Will this be on the test?" Their awe and ingenuousness at the neato-keeno things their professor is presenting is so unbelievable, especially for anyone familiar with real college students, that they jarred me away from the narrative.
Aside from that, expect to be surprised, shocked, and maybe even a little offended - but again, isn't that what we're here for? Brown has done his research, and whether or not you agree that his theories are correct or not, the fact is that there are some societies who believe in them. Learning about those theories alone made the book worth reading for me.
The plot itself is basic, a standard mystery/chase scene scenario that plays out across Europe. There are a few twists, but chances are pretty good you'll see them coming. The puzzles and cryptographs are witty, if inconsistent in their level of difficulty, and the characters are like milk - smooth, bland, and they go down fairly easily. The cookie is in the details and theories, and it's there that Brown has spent his time. Readers, you need the milk, but you're really there for the cookie. Swallow it down, you won't be disappointed.
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Summary: A thumping good read!
Review: Ignore all the negative reviews. I hate thrillers. Never touch them. Resisted reading this book for the longest time, but finally caved. Thank goodness! I could not put it down. Dan Brown's abilities as a story teller leave me breathless. And for all those who attack the premise, remember this is fiction!
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Summary: Explorations Into Western Aesthetics
Review: Imagine a murder committed in the world famous Louvre Museum in contemporary Paris ---the chief curator's body found beneath the immortal painting of the Mona Lisa. Then imagine yourself swept up and dropped amidst a secret society comprised of some of Western civilization's most illuminous artists and thinkers such as Da Vinci, Boticello, Sir Isaac Newton, and Victor Hugo, among others. The scope is epic in presentation. But that is exactly what the writer Dan Brown accomplishes with his stunning novel THE DA VINCI CODE. This is an extraordinary tale of suspense, exploring brilliantly the legendary mysteries of Western culture. The painstaking research obviously involved in this literary project is commendable. The writer artfully weaves his rich story within and around this historic and socioaesthetic context ---a daunting task in itself. Furthermore, he provokes rather subtly the reader by raising certain perhaps troubling issues of a clear religious nature. The main characters Sophie and Robert are immediately ensnarled in a world of high-level intrigue and sophisticated thrills. The reader is guaranteed a fascinating ride. Highly recommended novel by a talented writer.
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Summary: Lest you be confused by any facts, edutainment this isn't...
Review: Imagine a pseudo-intellectual murder mystery chase which carries the reader through the jungles of South America, past the Matterhorn and K2 all the way to the source of the Congo, encountering kangaroos, tigers, elephants, and various members of the Hmong, Ibo, and Lapp Indian tribes. Imagine someone reading it being genuinely impressed by the breadth of geographical knowledge displayed by the author. On the other hane, if you had any background in geography, it would be a quite annoying read, would it not? What if the characters were also semi-cartoonish and the various plot developments foreseeable? Well, you might want to keep reading just to see what everyone who liked it has been raving about or if your guess about who, what, and where turns out to be just what the author had in mind. Sorta like a crossword puzzle. Or you might put it down and wait for the intended movie starring none other than Harrison Ford. This is not the DaVinci Code, but, were you to futz around with history and Renaissance art - rather than geography - and inject into your story claims about Jesus, his disciples, and his church that were absolutely certain to be disputed, you would have the "literary equivalent" to the DaVinci Code. Fortunately I read a borrowed copy and only wasted my time. No way I'll pay to see the movie.
The RC Church (particularly Opus Dei) gets slandered in Brown's book (which, of course, generates controversy which generates book sales) but after weathering centuries of scandals which were actually true, the Church can easily take care of itself in this silly affair. Indeed, I suspect Opus Dei will actually benefit from the attention and likely new members it gets. The book's real victims aren't the Church, Opus Dei, the Apostles, or devout Christians; they are the folks who have read this book and imagine that Dan Brown's "research" has actually produced anything worth learning, readers who not only don't know any history, they're too lazy to investigate the "facts" for themselves. Maybe Brown wrote this thinking, like PT Barnum, "never give a sucker an even break," let's give 'em a putative "edutainment," wherein all the controversial "church-facts" fundamental to the story are not even "dangerous" or "heretical" because they are patently absurd to anyone willing to look into them. The more I think about it, the more I suspect just such a cynical ploy. Brilliant, actually. Put Jesus at the center of a sexual relationship with the Magdalene, grossly misrepresent the simplest historical facts about the Bible, the Church, DaVinci's depictions of various biblical scenes, etc. and when people point out inacuracies and absurdities, others will think that the Church really is "trying to hide something" about Jesus and Mary. Just like Barnum exhibited genuine animals to his audience, Brown does use genuine facts: Yes, there really was a DaVinci who painted the Mona Lisa, and it really does hang in the Palais Louvre in Paris (served, by the way, by Metro Line 7, aka "the Rose Line," - how did Langdon/Brown fail to mention that!?) There really were Knights Templar; there really is a Harvard University. There really was a Jesus of Nazareth and he really did love a woman, a disciple, called Mary Magdalene. For those of you who loved the book and really don't want to be confused by real (or at least more likely real) facts, there's plenty more of this stuff out there that is better written. In addition to the other books cited (by others) as Brown's "sources," read DH Lawrence's, The Man Who Died. Hey, read the "suppressed" gnostic gospels for yourselves. Even though they've supposedly been "suppressed" for centuries, you can actually buy them and read them for yourselves! Don't read anything about the early Christian church, Constantine, the Council of Nicaea, DaVinci, the Crusades, and especially don't read that earlier best-seller, the New Testament, ("the canon") for yourself.
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Summary: Haiku Review
Review: Impressive puzzle
and interesting premise.
Characters are flat.
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Summary: This is thought provoking fun
Review: In "The Da Vinci Code" Dan Brown borrows from and liberally interprets historical events to create a thriller that makes the reader think. In many novels, there comes a point where you can pinpoint the final outcome, but in this novel, Dan Brown has create a series of twists and turns that keep the reader guessing at what is going to happen next and what the outcome is going to be. While keeping the readers guessing about what is going to happen in the text, Brown has also created a novel that can make you think about how events and people in the past have affected our lives today. While this book doesn't answer the question, "Why should I study history?" (which I don't believe is the intent of the novel) it does provide some areas of question that makes the reader want to find out more about some aspects of history, that might or might not have been glossed over to promote a specific point of view. By far, in terms of new novels I have read lately, this is one of the most fun that has also made me think. The style of writing is not an academic style of writing, but it is also not written down to the level of the non educated either. It is a well written novel that you can read for fun or to really make the wheels of your mind turn.
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Summary: Great mystery about truth of Jesus, Last Supper
Review: In a nutshell the book is about a massive coverup by the Church, i.e. Christians and in particular the Catholic Church. Constantine the Great apparently and conveniently decided to leave out New Testament books in which Jesus was portrayed as a mere mortal. Da Vinci and others believed this and sent signals of their beliefs as code in paintings, music, etc. For example, look at the Last Supper painting by Da Vinci. The disciple sitting to right of Jesus surely looks like a woman, not John. Who is this person according to Da Vinci? None other than Mary Magdelene! Furthermore, Da Vinci and many others believed Mary was the wife of Jesus and bore his (their) child. What's amazing is that author brown backs up these beliefs with historical facts. I didn't believe it myself at first, but do as I did...go to google and do a search on photos of the recent restoration of da Vinci's Last Supper. Look at the so called man sitting to right of Jesus (left when looking at print). That is NOT a man, that is a WOMAN sitting next to Jesus.
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Summary: One of The Best Books I've Ever Read
Review: In addition to being just a good old fun and exciting mystery novel, this book is extremely enlightening as well. It provides an in-depth look at the history of Christianity and many secret societies that still exist today. It also explains how through centuries of propaganda, many ancient pagan rituals and symbols for life and beauty were misconstrued and demonized by the early church in order to convert the masses. If you are looking to read a book that is impossible to put down, and also learn a thing or two in the process, The Da Vinci Code is for you.
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Summary: Eye-opener
Review: In addition to providing the reader with an array of new possibilities to research on a seemingly endless variety of subjects, this estimable fellow has underscored what a crock organized religion is. If ever we can wean people from the mindless belief in established religious dogma and open their minds to what is truly magnificent - the reality and mystery of the universe sans superstitious god-worship - what a truly wonderful gift they will receive.
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