Dan Brown's "The Da Vinci Code" is as close to literature as a thriller novel dare approach. The protagonist, usually a detective or lawyer (in the style of John Grisham), is a symbolist and art historian in Harris tweed suits. The novel's intrigue centers not around a major corporation or government agency, but around the Catholic Church and the Masters of Renaissance art.
For these striking differences, "The Da Vinci Code" retains the familiar detective work and pervasive suspense of any good thriller.
The curator of the Louvre, which contains the largest collection of Da Vinci originals, Jacques Saunière is brutally murdered, yet manages to leave instructions to contact Robert Langdon, our Harvard-faculty, Harris-tweed-wearing hero. He and the curator's granddaughter, Sophie, a code cracker for the French equivalent of the FBI, must then piece together the cryptic message left by Saunière to his granddaughter. The messages, clues in paintings, in riddles, and in numbers, lead them on a quest across France and the United Kingdom -- on a quest for the secret of the Priory of Sion, a society which has been in existence since the beginning of Christianity, and of which Saunière was head. Almost immediately, Langdon and Sophie realize that the secret they are slowly uncovering also is being sought by Opus Dei, the conservative Catholic group, who plan to destroy it permanently.
It becomes known that the Priory guards the location of the Holy Grail, as well as its true nature, sought not only by the operatives of Opus Dei but also by historians and Grail fanatics. It is soon a race of wits, but Langdon and Sophie must not only discover the secret knowledge of the Priory, but also how to keep this knowledge out of the hands of Opus Dei.
Brown presents the adventure from various points of view: Sophie's, Saunière's, various Opus Dei operatives's, yet allows Langdon's narration to dominate, preserving his main-character status. The novel is divided into chapters, and the chapters are broken down into paragraphs or series of paragraphs of alternating points of view.
By alternating narrators, Brown creates gaps in knowledge, which produce anticipation for the next piece of information to be revealed, as well as uncertainty as to what will happen next. Contrasting the actions of the 'bad guys' with that of Langdon and his associates also adds to the suspense, since so often it seems that the 'bad guys' are ahead in the race. Vague foreshadowing, amplifies the suspense as well.
In order for the narrative to make sense, Brown supplies plenty of background information: histories of the Catholic Church, Priory of Sion, and Opus Dei, detailed descriptions of Da Vinci masterpieces, explanations of mathematical concepts and tales of the Grail lore.
In other novels, this material (fascinating in itself) might be skipped by readers, but Brown makes them integral to the plot, and reveals his facts through the knowledge and dialogue of the characters.
To skim this material is impossible -- without it the rest of the novel is unintelligible. "The Da Vinci Code" is, in essence, an "intellectual thriller" (my own term), teaching the reader church history and lore, art history and rudimentary symbology within a fast-paced and suspenseful novel.
You can't help getting wrapped up in "The Da Vinci Code."It is almost interactive; the descriptions and explanations seem to invite the reader to check for themselves. While reading, I often looked up the paintings described online so that I could see the clues being pointed out, and decide if I agreed with the interpretations given.
Soon, you feel a member of this team, and want to actively unravel the mystery. As a veteran mystery-reader (especially Agatha Christie's Miss Marple stories), I enjoyed trying to solve the puzzles and riddles as I read, often pausing to consider them before reading to the solution. However, I only beat Langdon once, knowing that Da Vinci often wrote with "mirror script." If you didn't know about this, read the book and find out more about it -- as well as more about various other subjects.
"The Da Vinci Code" has been number one on the New York Time's bestseller list for over 30 weeks not only because of the high quality of the writing and the fascinating plot, but also because of the controversy it courts with the Catholic Church. The historians and symbolists of the novel present an alternate view of the famed Holy Grail and the divinity of Jesus Christ. Furthermore, "The Da Vinci Code" examines the role of women in the church, especially the role of Mary Magdalene in Christ's life and the early church.
This issue serves as the impetus for Newsweek's Dec. 8, 2003 feature article on the role of women in the Bible and in the church. I would like to discuss the controversy in more detail, but that would mean spoiling some of the best moments in the novel. It does well, at a few points during the novel, to remind yourself that while the book hinges around existing groups and theories it is a work of fiction.
"The Da Vinci Code" is as much fun as the movies, highly educational and interesting, and not just to be enjoyed by "bookworms" or art history buffs (there is math in the book! More than once!). It is easily accessible and supremely captivating, stimulating not only quick page-turning, but deeper thought about the implications of guarded knowledge, church suppression, and the role of women not only in scripture but in all aspects of life.
(5 stars out of 5)
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