Da Vinci Code
I finally read the Da Vinci Code over the last two days, and in general I'm unimpressed. The writing is so-so, basically on par with the better works of Michael Crichton. Anyone who relies on phrases like "So-and-so didn't know that 4 hours from now, his whole world would be changed" needs to go back to writing class. He's also way too fond of this trick:
"So-and-So opened the box and looked inside. He was horrified by what he saw."
**** Chapter Break ****
"Someone-else far away from the previous setting did some unimportant things."
Or, even worse:
"So-and-So looked at the paper and read what the writing there. He was amazed at what it said. What was containined there would change the course of human history. He put it back in his pocket and continued on with this life, leaving readers screaming and throwing the book across the room."
**** 2 chapters later ****
"So-and-So read the text of the paper out loud: 'blah blah blah'"
I mean, I'm all for narrative suspense, but after pulling these kinds of tricks half a dozen times, it just gets old. If the only way you can sustain your reader's interest is by REFUSING TO TELL THE DAMN STORY, then you're doing something wrong.
The other things that bothered me was the various riddles/puzzles that had to be solved in order to progress the plot. Now, I'm all in favor of riddles and puzzles, but these were insultingly easy.
For example, one of the cryptex-related riddles starts with a line about "the ancient word for wisdom", and then there's three more lines about some other stuff. Also, one of the character's names is "Sophie". So the first thing I though was "hey, 'Sophia' is greek for 'wisdom'...but that's 6 letters...but 'ph' could be spelled with an 'f'." Sure enough, many pages later, after translating something into hebrew, then encrypting it with an ancient cipher scheme and so on and so forth, the characters arrive at the word: "sofia". Similarly, later in the book, there's another 4-line cryptex riddle, the last line of which says something about "rosy flesh" and "seeded womb". So I think "hmm...'pomegranate'? No, that's way to long. What other fruit has seeds...how about...'apple'?" Only after running around to 2 different tombs and having to actually LOOK OUT THE WINDOW AND SEE AN APPLE TREE, do the characters in the book finally figure it out.
I mean, wtf Dan Brown? How am I supposed to be impressed with all the knowledge and skills that these characters (a cryptography, a grail historian, and an art/symbology historian) supposedly possess if I can break these super-secret, earth-shaking-revelation-guarding riddles with a few second's idle thought? Also, what was the point of the other 3 lines in the riddles, if you could solve it just by using one line?
Conclusion: Foucault's Pendulum did it first and did it better. This is just a poorly written mish-mash of interesting ideas and history watered down for the masses. I suspect it will make a good movie.
Note: my distaste for the book has not stopped me from completing the entire google-sponsored Da Vinci Code Quest and looking forward to the possibility that I might be able to participate in the final puzzle challenge. I loves me the puzzles!
"So-and-So opened the box and looked inside. He was horrified by what he saw."
**** Chapter Break ****
"Someone-else far away from the previous setting did some unimportant things."
Or, even worse:
"So-and-So looked at the paper and read what the writing there. He was amazed at what it said. What was containined there would change the course of human history. He put it back in his pocket and continued on with this life, leaving readers screaming and throwing the book across the room."
**** 2 chapters later ****
"So-and-So read the text of the paper out loud: 'blah blah blah'"
I mean, I'm all for narrative suspense, but after pulling these kinds of tricks half a dozen times, it just gets old. If the only way you can sustain your reader's interest is by REFUSING TO TELL THE DAMN STORY, then you're doing something wrong.
The other things that bothered me was the various riddles/puzzles that had to be solved in order to progress the plot. Now, I'm all in favor of riddles and puzzles, but these were insultingly easy.
For example, one of the cryptex-related riddles starts with a line about "the ancient word for wisdom", and then there's three more lines about some other stuff. Also, one of the character's names is "Sophie". So the first thing I though was "hey, 'Sophia' is greek for 'wisdom'...but that's 6 letters...but 'ph' could be spelled with an 'f'." Sure enough, many pages later, after translating something into hebrew, then encrypting it with an ancient cipher scheme and so on and so forth, the characters arrive at the word: "sofia". Similarly, later in the book, there's another 4-line cryptex riddle, the last line of which says something about "rosy flesh" and "seeded womb". So I think "hmm...'pomegranate'? No, that's way to long. What other fruit has seeds...how about...'apple'?" Only after running around to 2 different tombs and having to actually LOOK OUT THE WINDOW AND SEE AN APPLE TREE, do the characters in the book finally figure it out.
I mean, wtf Dan Brown? How am I supposed to be impressed with all the knowledge and skills that these characters (a cryptography, a grail historian, and an art/symbology historian) supposedly possess if I can break these super-secret, earth-shaking-revelation-guarding riddles with a few second's idle thought? Also, what was the point of the other 3 lines in the riddles, if you could solve it just by using one line?
Conclusion: Foucault's Pendulum did it first and did it better. This is just a poorly written mish-mash of interesting ideas and history watered down for the masses. I suspect it will make a good movie.
Note: my distaste for the book has not stopped me from completing the entire google-sponsored Da Vinci Code Quest and looking forward to the possibility that I might be able to participate in the final puzzle challenge. I loves me the puzzles!