The Da Vinci Code

     So I read the Da Vinci Code this last week. I rarely read books by contemporary authors, but I read this one for the same reason I read Harry Potter: just to have a valid opinion of it. You can't say something was a waste of time or is the greatest thing since sliced bread unless you have read it yourself. Now that I have read it and have a valid opinion, my conclusion is this: I prefer sliced bread.
     It started off good, that's for sure. But honestly- from the moment they left the Louvre on, the book was written like a poorly directed movie. No problem in the book took more than a convenient recollection of an exaggerated historic fact or a memory of something that immediately led to an answer. The main characters aren't ever in any real danger because everything conveniently falls into place, thus catapulting them into their next easily-solved conundrum. I would much prefer for Dan Brown to write a dissertation on the sacred feminine than create some catchy thriller novel to spoon-feed his "wisdom" to others. I just had to laugh out loud every couple of pages at how self-indulgent and self-admiring that Dan Brown is. And I know that he went to bed at night thinking, "oh man, I'm the bestest writer ever! Bestest philosopher, historian, art critic, and religious guru too!", but I strongly disagree.
     To be fair, the book is good for what it's worth. I just didn't think it was really worth all that much. I actually wouldn't discourage anyone from reading it because it is a page turner and a quick read, so you don't miss out on much of your life if you take the time to read it. Many of the ideas that are presented in the book are intriguing and fairly enlightening- but just don't go into it thinking that everything is FACT, as stated in the prologue. It is more the theoretical musings of a shallow writer who grew up loving Indiana Jones.