The Da Vinci Code--Dan Brown

Submitted By: Kenny Wasmund
School: South Sioux City Middle School
Grade: 8
Title: The Da Vinci Code
Author: Dan Brown
Rating: 5 stars
Review:
What would happen if Christianity in general was based on a foundation of events that never took place? What lengths would people who were defending their faith go to in order to save the good name of their Catholic roots? In Dan Brown's novel The Da Vinci Code, you will discover the answers to these intriguing questions.

Imprinted throughout this religious thrill-ride are cryptic symbols and patterns that a symbologist named Robert Langdon along with a cryptologist named Sophie Neveu are forced to decipher. The curator of the Louvre has been murdered, but before dying, left a secret message on his body. Langdon finds that the curator is meant to depict Da Vinci's painting of "The Vetruvian Man". Neveu and Langdon's job is not only finding the meaning to this riddle, but also messages that follow. One of the final riddles in hidden in Leonardo Da Vinci's rendition of "The Last Supper".

Among some of the declarations that Dan Brown makes in this action-packed thriller includes the quite interesting statement that he makes about Jesus and John in "The Last Supper". Brown concludes that Jesus is not seated next to John, but none other than Mary Magdalene herself. That's not the end of it. Along with this, he also initiates the disillusional possibility that the "M" formed by Jesus and "Mary Magdalene's" outlines stands for matrimony. How odd would this conclusion be if it were, in fact, true? If Jesus was not only married, but actually conceived a child with Mary Magdalene, wouldn't this go against everything Christianity has taught?

In my opinion, this is the best novel to read if you are looking to ask "what if". Brown makes the case that Mary Magdalene and Jesus are lovers and that the verses have been left out of current ideologies. It is this kind of questioning that the reader is focused on while engaged in the murder in the book. I am not saying that the material written in or isn't true. I am simply stating the possibilities that it could be true. Nobody would merely spend the time that Dan Brown did on an ideal concept if they didn't have a reason for believing in the manner in which they do. There is absolutely nothing wrong with challenging modern beliefs as this book does.

Some of the other books that Dan Brown has written include the award-winning Angels & Demons and the futuristic novel Deception Point.
I would recommend this novel only to people who are fascinated with all the possibilities of believing in a certain faith. If you are solely set into your beliefs of religion, this book is not for you.