The Da Vinci Code

Rating:
Summary: Chill out!
Review: First off this is fiction. If you like a good thriller, mystery, adventure I cannot see how you would not enjoy this book. If you are a fundamentalist Christian, or an academic type don't bother (its fiction!) you will only be upset if the book doesn't follow your view of the way the world should be. This is a very good beach read, but ten years from now no one will remember it so chill out! If you like good thriller/adventure/mystery with an archeological bent check out: "A Tourist in the Yucatan"

Rating:
Summary: Awesome Story yet Poor Explanation
Review: First off, as a story this book was wonderful. It is one of those books that you really do not want to have to put down. As far as a fictitious story is concerned it is a good read.

I did not like the fact that there was not good explanation and no support of all the claims in the book. The author brings up ideas but never completes them. I thought the book was susposed to be focused on a view of Jesus, but I was left with some strange sexual worship of Mary. I walked away from the book wondering if the author was trying to proof anything or just write a good story. He did the later of the two.

I would not recommend this book to younger readers. There is language and explicit sexuality.

If you read this book, you might want to look into reading Breaking the Da Vinci Code which gives another viewpoint on the issues.

Rating:
Summary: Truly great!
Review: First off, I consider myself fairly well educated, though I do not consider myself very well read. That said, take my review with a grain of salt, if you must.

I serendipitously came across the book on an internet site forum where people were discussing some recent books. There, I found a webquest ... created by Dan Brown, the author. Loving a good challenge, I was immediately drawn into the quest and after completing it, I decided that if the book was as fun as the quest, I should look into it.

I purchased the book in the afternoon and when I got home, I did not stop reading it except to eat dinner, go to the gym, and shower. I could not tear myself away from the book!

I will not go into much detail as to the plot of the book as I would hate to spoil any surprises for future readers, but I will say that the book was an amazing contrast to some of our most popular beliefs. I don't feel the need to discuss my religious affiliation, but I will say that I was amazed and intrigued by the information set forth in Dan Brown's book. I truly did not know where fiction and non-fiction separated. Everything in the book seemed so real that if somebody told me this book was pure fiction (which I know it isn't), I would gasp in utter shock. The length that Brown went through to research the information in this book is phenomenal.

As the title of the book indicates--and if you go to the book's website that I mentioned--you will get a general feel for what the book entails. I feel I am not spoiling anything by letting you know that there are some codes in the book which require a bit of sleuthing and deciphering. I was very impressed and proud of myself when I read the text and was able to decipher some of the codes. Finally, a book that had my wheels turning!

Like I stated at the beginning of my review, I do not consider myself very well read. On the rare occasion that I do read a book, my usual fare is books about the military, especially military special forces. Noting this, I always roll my eyes when I hear anybody proclaim anything "the best ever"--especially when their opinion is in stark contrast to my own. Therefore, I am somewhat sheepish to proclaim this the best book I have ever read, though if prodded, I will declare it so.

I give this book my HIGEST RECOMMENDATION (as if I'm some sort of authority). I cannot see how anybody could be disappointed with this work.

I am eager to read some of Dan Brown's other work now, thanks to this fabulous book--especially "Angels and Demons".

Rating:
Summary: DID WE READ THE SAME BOOK???
Review: First off, I have to admit that I only made it through about a fifth of the book, so there may have been a few twists and turns that would have merited another star. I'm neither Catholic nor male, wasn't offended by this book as much as annoyed as I'd heard great things, and found it a pretty generic thriller, unbelievably so. I found the subject tedious and the writing not particularly memorable, especially the author's habit of halting in the middle of action and leaping to another chapter, then back again. I think this particular device must be in the Doubleday Handbook of How to Write A Page Turner, as it seems to crop up among their writers fairly often. In the end it was simple boredom that made me put the thing down. It was so well reviewed that I thought surely it couldn't be another piece of revisionist feminist nonsense, a la THE RED TENT -- but alas it was. Whereas TRT took aim (and stirred hype) by targeting the Patriarchs, THE DA VINCI CODE takes on the Holy Mother Church and its various sects and organizations and to what end, I didn't find, though I'm sure the goddess somehow came out on top.

Trendy nonsense that will soon be forgotten, and shame on the reviewers and NPR people who made so much of it.

Rating:
Summary: A great book if you can suspend disbelief and get into it
Review: First off, this book is a great example of a suspense thriller that is original is concept (not just another hack job from some writer taking what others have done successfully, throwing it in a blender and coming out with their own version of the same book). Brown delves deep into the pasts of Christianity and Western history, but makes it accessible to those who haven't taken a religion/humanities course since high school. The only problem with the book is that it does take a great deal of liberties while interpreting The Last Supper, some which are a little more than far-fetched U.F.O-esque conspiracy theories. The characters are somewhat trite--but all main characters in modern literature are trite in the 21st century. To suggest that The DaVinci Code would become a classic piece of literature used in schools around the country is laughable, but it is good book on the current best-sellers list that everyone who likes reading should really consider picking up.

Rating:
Summary: does truth matter?
Review: first point--conspiracy theories can never be trusted fully. second point, there's merit in disturbing what seems true--the fact that authority cannot be trusted wholeheartedly is a progressive attempt and is thus 'good.' ultimately it's a question of faith as to what you believe and what you not. contrary to common perception, faith is irrelevant to truth. in fact most liberals will argue that truth does not matter, b/c they can easily be manipulated. that said, the review clearly is inconclusive. the fact that phi (1.618:1) exists in nature is a general phenomenon not a sample path by sample path specificity. and if it so happens that that reader did not have the desired measurement of the golden ratio, it only suggests that his/her body is not what we will call 'pretty.' =) and as far as the suggested reading list goes, that list only contains one side of the story--the authentic history--whose validity was the central point of dispute in the novel and thus shall not be counted as conclusive evidence against that which is presented in the da vinci code.

Rating:
Summary: Read it, but read it as fiction
Review: First the good news. Brown should recieve an award for "strategic writing." This book has all the elements of the best seller it has become. The chapters are short, each ending with a tantalizing foreshadow of what incredible event lies just beyond the next page. The story is faced paced, uninhibited by lengthy character or setting development. The events are just to the other side of incredible. You won't be able to put this book down.
Now the bad news. This book could not be footnoted, Brown takes enormous license with historical facts. He takes as fact all the claims by the marginal political groups with personal agendas, while dismissing as false any respected scholar as being in bed with "the church." The last time I checked there was a heated debate going on between "the church" and respected New Testament academics, prehaps Brown missed Reimarius, Schweitzer, Funk. Also absent is an understanding that no women in her right mind would vote in the Gnostics over the cannon gospels. Perhaps Elaine Pagels being the only exception, a woman who, in the words of the Gospel of Thomas, wants to become a man so that she will be allowed entry into the Kingdom of God.
But lets not ruin good fiction by demanding that it should not be. The reader is evidently meant to take the author's note in the beginning of the book as fiction when he states, "All descriptions of artwork, architecture, documents and secret rituals in this novel are accurate." They are anything but accurate.
The book is entertaining and will cause a dialog about the nature of Jesus, for that it should be praised. But it should not be taken as accurate evidence, when it is no more than one author's wishful construction of history to fit his current needs.

Rating:
Summary: Inflammatory and inaccurate
Review: First this is an insult to Christians and I do not recommend books that attack the faith of others. More importantly the misuse of facts in mind numbing. He blatantly misrepresents dozens of facts to make them fit into his story. The reason I like Clancey novels is the reason I hated this one. It is worse than make-believe.

Rating:
Summary: A BRILLIANT BOOK...
Review: First, I think it is WONDERFUL that one book can create such controversy and inspire over 2000 readers to write a review. I think that Dan Brown is one of the most brilliant writers of our time.

It can be very disconcerting when basic core religious beliefs are scrutinized and examined. If you feel that it is wrong to ever question your beliefs or the Bible or Church - then it would probably be best not to read this book.

Rating:
Summary: Great story outweighs poor writing style
Review: First, let me say that for the last four days I couldn't wait to get back to The Da Vinci Code and I stayed up much too late the last night to savor the final pages of fun. Sadly however, it wasn't the quality of writing that kept me turning the pages.

There were plenty of art history, religious, symbolic and cultural tidbits woven into the plot - actually they were the plot - to make this a fascinating, fun read. About halfway into the book I began to wonder if they were really factual but by that time I didn't really care. My recollection of such things as the layout at the Louvre, my close inspection of a reproduction of the Last Supper to see the references for myself and believable descriptions of historical facts and symbols provided enough realism to satisfy me. Afterall, it's just a novel.

I just kept thinking of what a better book this could have been if there hadn't been so many trite passages. The characters' italicized ruminations to drive home certain plot points got really old, very quickly. The story didn't need the manufactured cliff-hangers at the end of each chapter, especially when many of the chapters were only 2-3 pages long.

Despite those faults, I recommend this book for a welcome diversion from our real world.