The Communique

Issue date: 4/29/04 Section: A&E

Brown´s "The DaVinci Code"

The New York Times bestseller, "The Da Vinci Code" by Dan Brown, is a good read but has caused much controversy since its release last year.

In this so-called "secular" novel Brown has opened minds to a different view of Christianity and has restored some faith in Christian skeptics but all the while creating much controversy with the faithful. Most of the controversy is due mainly to the fact Brown claims everything within the bind is based on fact. This includes the claim Jesus was married to Mary Magdalene.

Many television specials and books like "Debunking The Da Vinci Code," have sprung up as a result of this. In reality there is scant evidence to support Brown's theories. Much of the evidence is based on the book, "The Goddess In The Gospels" by Mary Starbird and various theories Brown's art professor taught him 15 years ago.

Brown tends to write with intricate details, causing some to have to reread passages but as the reader gets more comfortable with the writing style the initial confusion passes. The fast paced plot sucks the reader in and the novel becomes hard to put down.

The story begins with Robert Langdon, a professor of religious symbology at Harvard University, becoming a suspect in the recent murder of Louve museum curator Jacques Sauniere. Quickly Langdon finds he must clear his name by following a trail of clues left by Sauniere. Helped by Sauniere's estranged granddaughter, Sophia Nevue, Langdon soon discovers Sauniere was the leader of the Priory of the Sion and the last person to know the location of the Holy Grail. Not wanting the Grail's location to be lost forever, Sauniere sends Langdon and Nevue on a hunt across Europe to find the Grail's hiding place. But Langdon are not the only ones looking for the Grail. Some members of the Priory and a second society, backed by the Vatican church, are determined for Langdon not to find the location of the Grail.

"The Da Vinci Code" reflects much of the same sense of a Christian novel, such as Nicholas Sparks' "A Walk To Remember" but without the sentimentality.

Sold in the fiction section of bookstores, one may question Brown's credibility- did he write it as a fictional story or does he stand firmly behind his statement of fact? Whatever the answer, Brown has written a superb novel with a large following. Many are waiting for what may come next.

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