The Da Vinci Code

Rating:
Summary: Not usually one for hype
Review: Not usually one for all the hype, I avoided this book for months. That is, until a friend gave me a copy. Perhaps it was because I was initially pessimistic; perhaps it was because I don't like to follow the crowd; but for whatever reason I actually ended up liking this book. Some of the "facts" Brown presents are fascinating and you can easily spend hours looking up the ideas on the Internet. But aside from that the book is fast-paced and well, yes, it is a page turner (most chapter are only a page or two long, so you're forced to turn the page). Still, it was much more enjoyable that I anticipated and worth a shot. Whether or not you "believe" everything Brown tells you is up to you. Just don't take anything too seriously and enjoy it.

Also recommended: McCrae's BARK OF THE DOGWOOD

Rating:
Summary: from an honorary member of the Priory of Sion
Review: Note: if you are a Biblical literalist who idealizes the life of Jesus, this novel will likely be one to set aside with all the rest of the unapproved literature.

For me this book was a quick and clever read, and I enjoyed the plot twists and turns, the puzzles, and the bits of religious and art history (whether accurate or inaccurate). I did want deeper character development, and the ending was a bit of a letdown in some ways, but overall this book entertained me.

Few reviewers have commented on the shadowy Priory of Sion, said to be a kind of secret forerunner to the Rosicrucians, the Knights Templar, and even the Masons. I looked around a bit on the Internet and found sites that insisted on the Priory's reality and others that insisted it was a hoax. In this novel a main function of the Priory is to safeguard the esoteric wisdom tradition handed down from Jesus to Mary Magdelene. I've never seen any hard evidence for the claim that they married and founded a dynasty, but in the Gospel of Peter and the fragmented Gospel of Mary you can find references to Mary arousing the jealousy of the Twelve by being Jesus' favorite pupil. Perhaps the early church deposed the true inheritor of the inner teachings right from the start. (Check out the "saint" at Jesus' right hand in Leonardo's famous last supper painting.)

During my doctoral work on the missions of California I frequently came across people who insisted that Columbus was not a slave-owner, Cortez was not a butcher, and nearly half a million Indians did not perish of syphilis in upper and lower California, nor did the newspapers and the 49ers carry out a systematic program of genocide ("purity of labor" they called it in the mines). Why? Because it's easier not to change one's mind about what mom and dad and the church have always said was truth--conviction being safer than disillusionment even if it involves the spectacle of adults telling other adults what they can and cannot read and think. This novel is a work of fiction, but be aware that it does raise issues that challenge the dominant patriarchal paradigm under which Christendom has operated for so many centuries.

Rating:
Summary: Absurd!
Review: Nothing about this book was believable: not the characters,
not the plot. This reader got the impression that the
author was writing it with a movie in mind. On film, he
might have a winner because the artwork and scenery would
detract from the fact that the plot is absurd. If the action
were speeded up, people who like adventure films starring Stalone
and Arnold whats-his-name would probably eat it up.

Rating:
Summary: IT'S ALL FAKE!!!!!!
Review: Nothing in this book is true (hence fictional). If you want something with DaVinvi's name on it try looking in an art history book. it's just a whole load of crap. don't bother spending all that money - because (like me) it will just piss you off and for all the uneducated beings - they will beleive what they read and think they are smart and start passing off false information...

Rating:
Summary: People should know better
Review: Now HERE is a really bad book, sorry to say, even though it was the best-selling 'mystery' novel of 2003. I'm all for conspiracy theories as a sub-genre, recall being caught up in the Illuminati Trilogy of the 1970s, etc., but this is just over the top. I am not in favor of organized religion of any kind -- it is strictly a personal thing and nobody has the right to condemn or persecute anybody else for whatever they stand for -- but even so I can hardly believe that the Roman Catholic Church has been one giant conspiracy for the past 1000 years, murdering for the sake of suppressing worship of the mother goddess. Yes, there are indeed secret societies, but more along the lines of old-boy networks, Masons, the Bar Associations, Big Business, and the like. And yes, they are out to rip us off. As are politicians, bosses, capitalists, socialists, you name it -- all of those meddlers who think they know how the rest of us should live our lives. But there is nothing Satanic about this, it is just human nature. "The Da Vinci Code" is just plain silly, and even its vaunted scholarship is nonsense.

As a quick read, it's OK in an improbable way, like the James Bonds, but not halfway as stylish.

Rating:
Summary: It speaks for itself.
Review: Nowadays, a standard suspense/thriller novel will undoubtedly have approximately two main characters (of the opposite sex, of course) and the reader will be plunged into a tale of murder or deceit or something of the sort, and somewhere along the line, the two main characters of the opposite sex will fall in love. Its the run of the mill storyline and it sells. The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown, however, takes some of the basic recurring elements of the suspense/thrillers and puts a lot of thought and complex plot weaving together to come up with something with a unique sound to it. The book not only solves a murder mystery, but the mystery of the "Holy Grail." This goes far beyond anything many people would have imagined. The complex use of symbols and double meanings within the plot itself is impressive. To incorporate these elements into something tangible, such as Da Vinci's works, is an even higher level of amazing. Whether the description of hte art in this book is accurate, and the book claims it is, does not matter. What matters is that Brown managed to take something that coulda, mighta, maybe happened and made sense. So what if Da Vinci's stuff was just a ficticious spring board for the plot? It is incredible that it could be seen as that at all. This book is good and shouldn't be read analyzing it for truth- the prologue claims the descriptions of things are accurate. Just read the book; the rest speaks for itself.

Rating:
Summary: Dull, obvious, plodding
Review: O, Draconian Devil, why on earth did I read this book? I am not a cryptographer or world-famous symbologist, but I figured out the story's infantile puzzles long before the so-called experts. I also figured out why it's a page turner--you can't wait to turn the page to see whether the writing will improve. Really, the whole thing sounds like the Hardy Boys and the Keystone Copts, or Abbott and Costello Meet a Big Dumb Albino.

As for the historical accuracy, who cares? The book is achingly dull and predictable. Try Eco or Perez-Reverte if you want to experience a more literary thrill ride. Take Dorothy Parker's sentiments to heart: "This is not a novel to be tossed aside lightly. It should be thrown with great force."

Rating:
Summary: Conspiracy theory
Review: O.K. people, remember that this is a NOVEL, not a history book. It is nothing more than a conspiracy theory which an uneducated, gullible public will easily swallow as history. Don't be fooled. Other than it's poor attempt at re-writing history, it is not a bad read. It does get a little preachy at times, and the characters are flat and predictable. It is really the conspiracy theory posing as history that carries this book.

Rating:
Summary: Immense and Important!
Review: Obviously this is one of the most controversial novels in recent history, made even more so depending on one's religious faith and perspective. This great work is immense and important because of the author's interpretations of theology and history.

The codes deal with Da Vinci, his art, history, and theories related to him and the Christian church. I found suspense, conspiracy, imagination, a fast moving plot, great writing, and endless food for thought. He has integrated the mythical gray areas of religion and history into a brilliant thriller. Religious zealots need not read this work as it will either cause them some doubt about their religion or much consternation as they read and become filled with rage.

I just finished reading 'Crossfire' by Jim Marrs, the highest selling bestseller about the Kennedy assassination and 'Alien Rapture' by Edgar Fouche and Brad Steiger, the best selling government conspiracy novel dealing with the UFO cover-up, written by an authenticated credentialed Special Operations 'Insider.' So if you like controversy, conspiracy, cover-ups, thrills and great plots, read all three.

Rating:
Summary: One of the Worst Books Ever Written
Review: Of all the books I've ever read and didn't like, THE DA VINCI CODE is the only one I truly resent. It really is that awful and it's proof, at least in my opinion, that hype can sell just about anything.

There is nothing intelligent in THE DA VINCI CODE (and I mean nothing) and don't let anyone tell you there is. The research was sloppy, at best, and Brown has gotten many of the historical facts wrong. He even describes the layout of the Louvre wrong. I should know. I've lived in Paris and worked as a docent at the Louvre. He's also gotten some of his facts about Paris wrong as well. Those facts would have been easy to verify, so who knows how wrong his more obscure references are?

The plot of THE DA VINCI CODE is preposterous. Too preposterous to suspend disbelief and I suspend my disbelief pretty easily. Robert Langdon, a symbologist at Harvard no less, is giving a lecture in Paris and arranges to meet with Jacques Sauniere, the head curator of the Louvre, at Sauniere's request. However, before Langdon can meet with Sauniere, Sauniere is killed in the Grand Hall of the Louvre, itself. Brown asks us to believe that a dying man, during the very last moments of his life, arranged his bruised and bleeding body in a grotesque formation in order to provide a clue as to the reason for his death. Brown lost me here. This early. If I'm ever murdered, I'm sure I'll just wait to die rather than attempting to arrange my body so that someone left behind can solve the riddle of my death. At that point, I won't care if it's ever solved. Obtaining as much physical comfort as humanly possible during my last moments on earth will take priority with me. I'm sorry if that makes me selfish or less than socially responsible, but that's the way it's going to be.

Robert Langdon is the dumbest Harvard professor I've ever encountered, not that I've encountered all that many, so I'll be more general. Robert Langdon is one of the stupidest men I've ever encountered and I have encountered a great number of those. But, dumb as Robert is, he is a veritable genius when compared to the thick headed, dim witted, Sophie Neveu, Sauniere's granddaughter. This woman, who has little but mush between her ears is supposed to be a cryptologist for the French police. (Whenever I wonder why I don't return to Paris more often, I think of Sophie and I have my answer right away.)

As Robert and Sophie join forces to solve the mystery of Sauniere's death, the plot of THE DA VINCI CODE begins to take shape. The premise of the book wasn't a bad idea, but its execution leaves so, so much to be desired. I never thought I'd find a writer who could make John Grisham look "good," but Dan Brown does. In spades.

Besides horrible, flat, cardboard cliche characterization and a laugh out loud plot, THE DA VINCI CODE is very poorly written and there is just no excuse for that. I know it's not a literary novel. So what? Does the fact that this book is a genre novel mean that the quality of the writing should be below that of an average eighth grade level? The characters made me wince on almost every other page; the poor writing made me wince on every single page. Sometimes I found myself wondering if Brown had actually set out to write the book as poorly as possible, but I didn't entertain that thought for long.

As for the religious aspects of THE DA VINCI CODE, I am Catholic, but I'm not a practicing Catholic. I am not narrow minded and I wasn't offended by Brown's religious premise...I simply found it silly and downright laughable...but not, however, in any way that I could even remotely characterize as "amusing." It was laughably stupid. I don't even know anything about Opus Dei, the organization Brown seemed to be slamming in his book, so I wasn't offended in any way by the book's definite anti-Catholic stance. The poor writing alone was offensive enough, Brown needn't have tried to offend in any other manner. I also know little about the Priory of Sion, though I have visited Rennes-le-Chateau, the story Brown used as a base for this terrible book.

The chapters were short and choppy and painful to read and each ended with what some people would term a "cliff hanger." To me, they were just tripe to propel the mindless into the next bit of tripe. I did finish the book (a feat for which I congratulated myself), but it was painful. I kept hoping that both Robert and Sophie would be tortured and die (a more fitting end could not have been found). Feeling that that was hoping for a bit too much, I began hoping that at least Sophie (the stupider of the two) would at bite the eternal dust...and soon. I could see the end coming many, many pages away and it made my stomach churn...literally. I don't think I was even able to get down dinner that night.

THE DA VINCI CODE is a terrible, terrible book from the first page to the last. The plot is preposterous, the characters are thin and cliche (and stupid cliches at that), and, worst of all, the writing is among the worst I've ever read. Only Diane Johnson in LE MARIAGE tops it for its terrible quality.

This book might appeal to people who like pulp fiction, but anyone who enjoys intelligent books or even bestsellers that are well-written, had best stay as far away as possible. In the end, I found THE DA VINCI CODE to possess not even one redeeming quality. I wish I could award it negative stars, but, unfortunately, that's not an option.