The DaVinci Code

By: Dan Brown

    Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code is easily one of the best novels I have read in a long time.  I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it.  Even though I disagreed with almost everything in the novel, I thought it was a great read.  I would definitely recommend The Da Vinci Code to a friend, but with the warning that almost every historical fact cited in the book is false.

    The Da Vinci Code is one of the most thrilling books I have ever read.  It starts off in a museum with an albino monk asking an old man where something is.  The man answers, and the monk shoots him.  The man, knowing he only has minutes to live, arranges himself in a way only two people would understand: his granddaughter Sophie and a symbologist named Robert Langdon.  Langdon is called to the crime scene by the police to determine why the old man is lying in the middle of the floor in such a strange position.  Sophie arrives and tells Langdon that he is a suspect in the murder, and they manage a miraculous escape from the police.  They proceed to run from the police throughout Europe all through the night, searching for clue after clue.  They finally discover what is described as the biggest cover-up in the history of mankind.  The book is never boring, and it keeps you on the edge of your seat.  

    While The Da Vinci Code is an exciting novel, it has been the subject of tons of controversy.  The criticism, mostly from religious groups, comes from Brown's falsification of several historical events while giving the background information in the book. The Catholic Church is described in a very negative way in the novel.  Another reason is that the secret Langdon and Sophie discover totally goes against the basic principles of Christianity.  It is hard to say if this publicity has actually hurt the book because it has brought so much interest to it.

    My advice to readers is very simple: read and enjoy the novel, and do not believe a single word it says.  On the front of the cover are the words “A Novel”.  Try to remember that while the book may sound convincing, it is all made up.  If your beliefs are shaken, though, research some of the “facts” given in the novel, and you will find that almost every single one of them is completely fabricated.  

    In conclusion, I think The Da Vinci Code is an exhilarating novel.  The action starts on page one and does not slow down until the final page.  However, readers must keep in mind that although the historical references make the claims in the novel sound convincing, they are entirely false.  If readers can realize that The Da Vinci Code only a novel, they will be in for one of the best books they will have read in a long time.

-Harry W.

“art and symbolism, twists and turns – an entertaining read”

            Dan Brown’s The DaVinci Code is a very entertaining read. Brown, a master of the mind thriller, uses clever word games and number games to keep readers on their toes. Robert Langdon, an American college professor, is scheduled to meet with Jacques Sauniere, the curator of the Louvre, but Mr. Sauniere never shows. He has been brutally murdered in his own museum. The captain of the French Judicial Police, Captain Bezu Fache is convinced that Langdon is responsible because of the message Sauniere left on the ground next to his naked body that was in the position of DaVinci’s famous sketch, the Vitruvian Man:
13-3-2-21-1-1-8-5
O, Draconian Devil!
Oh, Lame Saint!

            Fache erases the last line before Langdon arrives at the Louvre in order to keep him unaware that he is under investigation. The line reads; PS: Find Robert Langdon.

            Sophie Neveu, Sauniere’s cryptologist granddaughter, is the only one who believes Langdon did not kill her grandfather. She aids in his escape and becomes a fugitive herself. Sauniere leaves his granddaughter and Langdon a complex trail of clues to follow to help prove Langdon’s innocence and to give a message to Sophie.

            Dan Brown keeps you thinking by adding twists and turns every time you come to a definite conclusion. Brown uses codes to hide the answers to all the questions. Every answer is in front of Langdon and Sophie, but they can’t see them until they figure out the previous clue. These clues keep the mind racing throughout the novel. There are also a
number of people who appear to be helpful and supportive of the two fugitives, but they often turn out to be the worst kind of enemies.
           

          Brown keeps the twists and puzzles alive until the bottom of the very last page. I literally couldn’t put the book down. His writing style is very easy to understand, but it doesn’t feel like I’m reading a picture book. The DaVinci Code also taught me a little about art and symbolism. I never realized that the Jewish Star of David contains symbols of the chalice, or the sacred feminine, and the symbol of the blade. Brown may not be Shakespeare, but his writing is undoubtedly the most interesting I have read since The Cat in the Hat.

          Other novels by Brown include Angels and Demons, Deception Point and Digital Fortress. The DaVinci Code, printed in more than 40 languages, has sold over seventy million copies worldwide.

-Kyle W.