The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown Summary and Reviews
|
List Price: Our Price: $1.55 You Save: $25.40 (94%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $0.01 (click here) Category: Book See more book details and other editions |
|---|
Book Reviews of The Da Vinci Code
Book Review: A Borrowed Idea, So-So Writing, and a Gaping Plot Hole.
Summary: 2 Stars
As other reviews have pointed out, the basic foundation for this novel is taken straight from the idea that the Holy Grail is actually Mary Magdalene in her role as Jesus's wife, carrying his child. Brown adds nothing new to this legend (which is covered in detail in the book "Holy Blood, Holy Grail," by Michael Baigent, et al), but uses it as the stage upon which his characters act out their parts. The plot for the "Da Vinci Code" revolves around exposing some secret documents that will prove the legend true. Unfortunately, the action is more Keystone Cops than adventure-thriller, and the writing is a bit tortuous in places. One thing an author owes his readers is to make sure the plot devices work. In this aspect, Brown fails miserably. Central to the story is a gadget designed by Da Vinci called a "cryptex." It is a hollow cylinder (picture a tennis ball can) made of several cylindrical sections, each engraved with a series of letters. The whole thing is held together in a mechanism so that the individual sections can rotate like a giant bicycle combination lock. When the letters are aligned to a particular secret word, the device can be opened and the contents extracted. Inside is a parchment scroll with the hidden information. As it turns out, vinegar quickly dissolves parchment; so to safeguard against anyone just smashing the cryptex, the parchment is wrapped around a glass vial of vinegar. Smash the cryptex, the vial breaks, the parchment dissolves, and the secret message is lost. Much of the plot is built around attempts to decipher the code on the cryptex so it can be safely opened. At various times in the novel, both the hero and villain have full possession of the cryptex, and engage in odysseys and research to try to figure out the code. There is, however, a far easier solution than unscrambling the cylinders or smashing the cryptex. All one would have to do is take a Dremel power tool with a small circular saw on it, and cut through the cylinders without breaking the vial within (a more high-tech solution would be to cut it open with a laser). Why the "brilliant" characters never thought of this is a plot hole the Louvre could fall through. But then, had they thought of it, the book would have been over far (and mercifully) sooner.Book Review: A Case For John Grisham?
Summary: 1 Stars
"The Da Vinci Code" is a fast-paced page-turner. Though by adult literary standards, the book is fairly weak, it should serve as a great start for young people interested in the adventure of European history. I sincerely applaud that. Unfortunately Brown and his editors made the choice to preface the book with specific claims concerning "Fact" and "Accuracy." This was a strange decision. Mr. Brown's interpretations are his own business, but he is swearing that the basic facts on documents and art objects are correct. As has already been shown in "The New York Times" and others, this is unquestionably untrue. The book has more factual holes in it than a mound of Swiss (Secret Bank Account) Cheese. Are we then to assume that Mr. Brown and his publishers are simply incompetent, or were they knowingly dishonest. If someone sells me a painting they say is real but turns out to be a forgery, it is a crime. Here an author and publisher have made tens of millions of dollars peddling a book to millions of people, to a large degree because they claim it is based on controversial but accurate information. Now that much of that basic information is turning out to be false, isn't that a clear-cut case of fraud? No accusations here, just an honest question.
I hold a MA degree from an Ivy League school and have lived in Europe for many years. I am concerned about how much deceit I see in American culture these days. I, for one, will be trying not to buy books from Doubleday in the future. I hope Mr. Brown continues to serve up his platters of fun for young people, but I hope very much that he and his publishers decide to retract their false claims to accuracy. Besides, my experience has been that the truth (or at least an honest attempt based on current research) about a number of the areas Brown touches on is much more interesting than the tired myths and legends he serves up here, albeit in a zippy new package.
Book Review: A Classic!
Summary: 5 Stars
Dan Brown's masterful new offering, The Da Vinci Code, is an intellectually stimulating and pulse-quickening triumph. The combination of completley unanticipated plot twists, fascinating artistic and historical facts, and the stunning manner in which Mr. Brown interweaves and interprets them is a monumental achievement. It is truly a rare offering that is both highly readable, educational, and extremely addictive.This is a book that should appeal to anyone looking for a rare item: a thrilling page-turner that is both accessible to anyone but that does not insult anyone's intelligence. It will pump you full of adrenaline and knowledge. The Da Vinci Code will be the book that everyone is talking about for great reasons.
If they havent already!
Congrats Mr. Brown, your book was a pleasure to read!
Book Review: A Code Worth Cracking Open
Summary: 4 Stars
The #1 job of a novelist is to keep the reader turning pages, and Dan Brown succeeds with The Da Vinci Code. Brown builds a story that races from one plot twist to another with breathless action: the over-used moniker "page-turner" applies in this case. The plot is tight and lean, showcasing Brown's greatest strength: his ability to feed the reader new nuggets of information every few pages, while stringing along a number of other mysterious threads. This gives the reader a sense of constant discovery, while building anticipation for answers to come. I have a few quibbles with the book, and they really are quibbles more than anything. First, Brown seems to have a penchant for beginning his sentences (especially in action sequences) with participial phrases: "Turning now and scanning the room, Sophie's eyes...", "Walking toward the bare wooden wall, Sophie...", "Feeling around the edge of the panels, Sophie..." "Heart pounding, she placed her finger..." And so on. Like salt, a little bit of this technique adds flavor; also like salt, too much ensures you can't taste anything else. A hundred pages in, I found myself starting to count the occurrences. I think his editor could have been a bit more ruthless in this department.
Second, Brown manages to interrupt his own sparkling narrative flow on a number of occasions. Many times, his characters reflect back on some past event: the dreaded flashback. Again, no big whoop when used here and there, but Brown does border on overuse.
At other times, Brown interrupts the narrative for lengthy author intrusions. That's probably my biggest complaint, come to think of it: Brown pushes too far to explore his basic premise. Before the book has ended, he has told you everything from iambic pentameter to Disney movies to Swiss banking is an admirably subversive attempt to keep paganism alive in today's society. (Read the book and you'll understand.) Well, Gee, Dan. Sometimes an architect uses circles in her designs for aesthetic reasons, and not because she's trying to make people worship the pagan sun symbol.
In instances like these (as well as instances where hotly-debated issues of New Testament scholarship are cited as fact: Mary Magdalene's role in the early church, the existence of the "Q" document, and so on), the reader might rightly feel the characters are speaking more for Dan Brown than for themselves--and sounding a wee bit shrill in the process.
But hey, it's Dan Brown's book, and he controls its universe. It's his prerogative to explore whatever issues he wants, however he wants. Whatever misgivings you may have about the content (and most Evangelical Christians and Catholics with have major misgivings), you can't fault the guy on his craft: he knows how to put together a damned good read.
Book Review: A Code for The Da Vinci Code
Summary: 5 Stars
11 23 47 89 73 26 18 92 55This is the real code for understanding the depth of Da Vinci.
If you can break it, you are qualified to comprehend what most fail to see.