Da Vinci Code

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lady_charlie
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Re: Da Vinci Code

Post by lady_charlie »

I agree that fiction is fiction although history is what it is.
I for one was taught in school that Columbus thought the world was flat.
Fascinating book and I learned a lot of things that are real.
It gave me a lot to think about.
It is the small everyday deeds of ordinary folk that keep the darkness at bay. J.R.R. Tolkien
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Post by lydia51 »

Well, excuse me, but I loved all of Dan Brown's books, especially "The Da Vinci Code. It was well researched and fast paced. I loved all the code and symbolism stuff, and I learned a lot of things I didn't know before. Learning new things and a great plot makes for a great read for me.
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tiajanay
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Post by tiajanay »

When I had watched the movie i thought the book was going to mind blowing but I was disappointed . Sadly even in the color edition with all the pictures the felt sadly lacking in the plot. It didn't feel believable and it really wasn't as interesting as i had hoped. It was almost like it was going over my head with some of its descriptions but i had pictures and still it wasn't great. i don't know it was alright. i didn't hate it but i would be recommending it to any of my friends as a best read.
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Post by Happily Candied »

My post doesn't talk too much about plot points, so I don't believe any spoilers are given in this review. I'm mostly touching base on my opinions about the structure of the story, Brown's writing style and how the two affected my reading.

General thoughts

I read The Da Vinci Code because I was interested to see what all the hype was about after its initial release. The time in which I read it played a critical role in my opinion of the book, mostly because it was during my personal transition from Roman Catholicism to agnosticism. After being raised under the beliefs of the Church for over 18 years and attending Catholic grade school and high school, I was at a very interesting place in my life. The knowledge I'd learned throughout my schooling and my teachings at home came to great use while reading. My new grasp of a more generalized belief system helped me form a unique take of the plot.

Sad to say, Brown's book was one of the only pieces of literature I've ever had to force myself to finish. My attachment to Robert and Sophie was lacking and I found I didn't truly care about their mission or cause. What was frustrating about this realization while reading was that I wanted so badly to care about everything. After all, many literary ingredients were there for the using: a unique topic, characters with a clear mission, elements of mystery, rich history and so on; but in my opinion, they just weren't successful when woven together by Brown.

Just 50 pages in, I remember being greatly disappointed. I thought that the topic at hand was interesting and I thought that Brown's attempt at telling a thrilling story about Catholicism's history was present, but the execution of the work as a written piece was just too poorly done for my liking. As a work of adult fiction, it was overly simplistic in form (the chapter length comes to mind) and prose. I felt as though I'd read books in teen fiction more complex and intriguing. And now, as a more experienced adult and reader, I still hold that opinion.

By the end of The Da Vinci Code, I felt like I had been led on a long charade by the book's die hard fans. The best way I can explain my thoughts is by making a comparison of popular books to blockbuster movies: Finding Nemo, being one example. Its makeup was simple in form and it contained an interesting story for people of all ages. (The fact that The Da Vinci Code focused on a controversial subject-- religion-- gave it bonus points.) Basically, the reason why I felt this particular book was a bestseller was because it could sell to, and be understood by, a wide range of audiences.

Aftermath & realizations

As low as my opinion of the book might be, I do feel like some good came out of its popularity: Both Christians and non-Christians were finally made more aware of the religion's history. The Da Vinci Code caused people to think and to perform their own research because of stories in the fictional book, which in turn, helped bring forth many truths about the religion to the surface. Throughout my early life, I had been dumbfounded by fellow Christians around me who didn't know both basic and misunderstood (or hidden) elements of their own religion. It was refreshing to see people publicly discussing the realities of Catholicism, whether they were spoken of under a positive or a negative light.
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heatherprzybyla
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Post by heatherprzybyla »

I agree, it was over rated and the movie wasn't great either. The topic was very interesting and something that intrigued people because it took "in general, boring history" and turned it into a pretty interesting journey.
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Post by whero »

I agree that it was overrated too, I liked the Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons, but I read his other books too (Deception Point, Digital Fortress) and found them to be very underwhelming. So I rather suspect that it was because the subject matter of the Da Vinci code was old conspiracies that I liked it so much.
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Garett Kelly
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Post by Garett Kelly »

I actually finished The Da Vinci Code just to understand what was the big fuss about it. Well, for me it was like the tour guide stitched up a story of a man to make the travel a little interesting.
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Post by mcs1040 »

Good plot, otherwise mediocre. There are better writers out there.

-- 21 Sep 2013, 11:03 --

Great plot, bad writer.
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Post by L_Therese »

I remember when The Da VInci Code came out and got huge. The reason I read it in the first place was because so many people started exclaiming over how terrible (in content, not quality) it was! Then I read it and was rather unimpressed. Dan Brown's books are too formulaic for my taste. You know the end as soon as the characters are introduced. I was far more impressed with Angels and Demons, but that book is still sadly lacking in many places. I do not for a moment believe that Dan Brown's work has had or will have any substantial ill effect on culture or damage the perceived integrity of the Catholic Church.
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ShubhamAgrawal
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Post by ShubhamAgrawal »

Well !! What can I say. I personally love Dan Brown books featuring Robert Langdon. Davinci Code was the first book I read of Dan Brown. Agreed it had a pen ultimate effect on me. How come you didn't liked Davinci Code. I even like angels & Demons but yeah Davinci code was awesome. it was filmed very properly.
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Brexen
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Post by Brexen »

I have actually never read this whole book cover to cover. Every time i try to pick it up i just get bored within the first 10 pages. I wish i could get into it but i guess it is just one of those books for me...
miannoco

Post by miannoco »

I received it as a present and was so excited to read it, save to finish it kinda disappointed. It starts well and the investigation games the author has found to catch your deepest interest are quite well done but eventually he falls into cliche with the Holy Grail story. Briefly I appreciated following the path to discovery, but not the eventual ending.

-- 08 Oct 2013, 07:45 --

oh and the movie was disappointing!
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soupdragon1984
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Post by soupdragon1984 »

I thought it was a good plot and enojoyed reading it. I struggled through Angels & Demons which was disappointing and forced myself to finish the 3rd book in the series- says something about the standard of that - I can't even remember the name of it.
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Post by r123 »

I liked it after reading a couple of pages. Initially it took me some time to get inside this book. But I won't say it was bad. Kept me glued till the end. I think more than overated it was controversial. And reading a controversial book always has an edge.
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Post by feyindie60 »

The Da Vinci Code really had me excited at first. The premise was enough to get me through 3/4 of the book! When I finally settled down, I realized the book was no better or worse than any other story I had read. Dan Brown has taken some possibilities and molded them into a theory. While it is an entertaining theory, it is still fiction. In my eyes much of what passes as religion is also fiction, so Dan Brown has just added to my mythology "bank".

The writing is well done. He is certainly well educated and well informed. I feel like I have traveled to Italy since my reading Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons. I certainly know more about the Vatican. I have a better understanding of symbols from reading his works.

I have to say people around me have dampened my enthusiasm. In public that is. I no longer shout out loud how much I like these books. But behind closed doors I read them every couple of years just to remind myself there is still a little mystery to work on in this world.
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