Angels and Deamons and excetera.

[Erenoth2002]

I was wondering if odyssey had had any episodes to relate to the new book series, ive never read them however ive studied them a little in college classes, but the sad thing is alot of my friends and teenagers in the church are reading them and leaving the church. Sadly the popularity of this new book series is ruining the faith of alot of believers.

[Boswell]

It didn't affect my faith in God any, but it sure did a number on my faith in good writers. Content aside, Dan Brown is one of the lousiest writers I've ever had the misfortune of reading. Odyssey will do the world a favour by never addressing these literary travesties.

[Elrohir]

Anyone who left the church from reading these books probably had their faith in the wrong place to start with. Dan Brown likely just sped up the inevitable for them.

[Sherlock]

Wow. I've read all of Dan Brown's books and while I consider them a fun "adventure" read, I agree that they're not great literature and would be baffled that anyone would look on them as any sort of theological authority. Brown readily admits that his work is fiction and, by inference, we can assume that this means that it would be silly for anyone (much less college students) to be reading these books expecting historical or theological accuracy.

Furthermore, some of his books have nothing to do with theology whatsoever, so I'm assuming you're only referring to "The DaVinci Code" and "Angels and Demons"?

[The Top Crusader]

I'm surprised anyone stupid enough to leave their faith over a silly novel was even capable of reading it to begin with.

[J-man]

LOL, too true. Can't people tell the difference between fiction and non-fiction?! I agree with Sherlock, sorta fun to read, but ultimately still fiction.

[Elrohir]

Not to mention the countless TV specials that aired when the movies came out debunking every claim in the books.

[Sherlock]

Okay, so I'm starting to see how the following could be construed as a work of an erudite, theological scholar:

Dan Brown's 20 Most Awkward Sentences:

20. Angels and Demons, chapter 1: Although not overly handsome in a classical sense, the forty-year-old Langdon had what his female colleagues referred to as an ‘erudite’ appeal — wisp of gray in his thick brown hair, probing blue eyes, an arrestingly deep voice, and the strong, carefree smile of a collegiate athlete.

They say the first rule of fiction is “show, don’t tell”. This fails that rule.

19. The Da Vinci Code, chapter 83: "The Knights Templar were warriors," Teabing reminded, the sound of his aluminum crutches echoing in this reverberant space.

“Remind” is a transitive verb – you need to remind someone of something. You can’t just remind. And if the crutches echo, we know the space is reverberant.

18. The Da Vinci Code, chapter 4: He could taste the familiar tang of museum air - an arid, deionized essence that carried a faint hint of carbon - the product of industrial, coal-filter dehumidifiers that ran around the clock to counteract the corrosive carbon dioxide exhaled by visitors.

Ah, that familiar tang of deionised essence.

17. Deception Point, chapter 8: Overhanging her precarious body was a jaundiced face whose skin resembled a sheet of parchment paper punctured by two emotionless eyes.

It’s not clear what Brown thinks ‘precarious’ means here.

16. The Da Vinci Code, chapter 4: A voice spoke, chillingly close. "Do not move." On his hands and knees, the curator froze, turning his head slowly. Only fifteen feet away, outside the sealed gate, the mountainous silhouette of his attacker stared through the iron bars. He was broad and tall, with ghost-pale skin and thinning white hair. His irises were pink with dark red pupils.

A silhouette with white hair and pink irises stood chillingly close but 15 feet away. What’s wrong with this picture?

15. The Da Vinci Code, chapter 4: As a boy, Langdon had fallen down an abandoned well shaft and almost died treading water in the narrow space for hours before being rescued. Since then, he'd suffered a haunting phobia of enclosed spaces - elevators, subways, squash courts.

Other enclosed spaces include toilet cubicles, phone boxes and dog kennels.

14. Angels and Demons, chapter 100: Bernini's Fountain of the Four Rivers glorified the four major rivers of the Old World - The Nile, Ganges, Danube, and Rio Plata.

The Rio de la Plata. Between Argentina and Uruguay. One of the major rivers of the Old World. Apparently.

The Da Vinci Code, chapter 5: Only those with a keen eye would notice his 14-karat gold bishop's ring with purple amethyst, large diamonds, and hand-tooled mitre-crozier appliqué.

A keen eye indeed.

13 and 12. The Lost Symbol, chapter 1: He was sitting all alone in the enormous cabin of a Falcon 2000EX corporate jet as it bounced its way through turbulence. In the background, the dual Pratt & Whitney engines hummed evenly.

The Da Vinci Code, chapter 17: Yanking his Manurhin MR-93 revolver from his shoulder holster, the captain dashed out of the office.

Oh – the Falcon 2000EX with the Pratt & Whitneys? And the Manurhin MR-93? Not the MR-92? You’re sure? Thanks.

11. The Da Vinci Code, chapter 4: Captain Bezu Fache carried himself like an angry ox, with his wide shoulders thrown back and his chin tucked hard into his chest. His dark hair was slicked back with oil, accentuating an arrow-like widow's peak that divided his jutting brow and preceded him like the prow of a battleship. As he advanced, his dark eyes seemed to scorch the earth before him, radiating a fiery clarity that forecast his reputation for unblinking severity in all matters.

Do angry oxen throw their shoulders back and tuck their chins into their chest? What precisely is a fiery clarity and how does it forecast anything? Once again, it is not clear whether Brown knows what ‘forecast’ means.

10. The Da Vinci Code, chapter 4: Five months ago, the kaleidoscope of power had been shaken, and Aringarosa was still reeling from the blow.

Did they hit him with the kaleidoscope?

9. The Da Vinci Code, chapter 32: The vehicle was easily the smallest car Langdon had ever seen. "SmartCar," she said. "A hundred kilometers to the liter."

Pro tip: when fleeing from the police, take a moment to boast about your getaway vehicle’s fuel efficiency. And get it wrong by a factor of five. SmartCars do about 20km (12 miles) to the litre.

8. The Da Vinci Code, chapter 3: My French stinks, Langdon thought, but my zodiac iconography is pretty good.

And they say the schools are dumbing down.

7 and 6. The Da Vinci Code, chapter 33: Pulling back the sleeve of his jacket, he checked his watch - a vintage, collector's-edition Mickey Mouse wristwatch that had been a gift from his parents on his tenth birthday.

The Da Vinci Code, chapter 6: His last correspondence from Vittoria had been in December - a postcard saying she was headed to the Java Sea to continue her research in entanglement physics... something about using satellites to track manta ray migrations.

In the words of Professor Pullum: “It has the ring of utter ineptitude. The details have no relevance to what is being narrated.”

5. Angels and Demons, chapter 4: learning the ropes in the trenches

Learning the ropes (of a naval ship) while in the trenches (with the army in the First World War). It’s a military education, certainly.

4, 3, and 2. The Da Vinci Code, opening sentence: Renowned curator Jacques Saunière staggered through the vaulted archway of the museum's Grand Gallery.

Angels and Demons, opening sentence: Physicist Leonardo Vetra smelled burning flesh, and he knew it was his own.

Deception Point, opening sentences: Death, in this forsaken place, could come in countless forms. Geologist Charles Brophy had endured the savage splendor of this terrain for years, and yet nothing could prepare him for a fate as barbarous and unnatural as the one about to befall him.

Professor Pullum: "Renowned author Dan Brown staggered through his formulaic opening sentence".

1. The Da Vinci Code: Title. The Da Vinci Code.

Leonardo’s surname was not Da Vinci. He was from Vinci, or of Vinci. As many critics have pointed out, calling it The Da Vinci Code is like saying Mr Of Arabia or asking What Would Of Nazareth Do?

Source

[Danielle Abigail Maxwell]

Yeah, no one I know has lost their faith. My mom read the books (both "Da Vinci Code" and "Angels and Demons") and she told my dad and I if we wanted to read them it was wise to kinda put all belief aside. Meaning: there's stuff that can seem real, but its not stuff to really worry about. Some of it can be real, but push that aside. Its a book, not a work of nonfiction. I can't remember the exact saying now, which is sad because it illustrates my mom's point perfectly... oh well. Just, I haven't heard of anyone losing their faith over books that are fiction... Then again, some people like to think about Harry Potter and Twilight... oh brother.

[KODY 105]

I interject: da Vinci is well-understood as the abbreviated name of Leonardo da Vinci.

I have no intention of ever reading any of these books by this Dan Brown person.

[Oba-rai]

why didn't he just rename and direct his novel toward New Jerseyians and Philadelphians knowing that "The Vinci Code" would become "Da Vinci Code" anyway?

[KODY 105]

Because Jersey and PA aren't everything (yet)!