Even the New YorK Times Book Review acknowledges the “Da Vinci Code” is a carefully constructed hoaz laid on top of a suspense story. In fact, the review spends as much, or more, time debunking “Holy Blood, Holy Grail,” the book that supposedly gives the “true” story that is the “Da Vinci Code’s” backstory, as it does DVC.
Thus liberated, Lincoln et al. concoct an argument that is not so much factual as fact-ish. Dozens of credible details are heaped up in order to provide a legitimizing cushion for rank nonsense. ... The authors spin one gossamer strand of conjecture over another, forming a web dense enough to create the illusion of solidity. Though bogus, it’s an impressive piece of work. ... Plantard’s hoax was debunked by a series of (as yet untranslated) French books and a 1996 BBC documentary, but curiously enough, this set of shocking revelations hasn’t proved as popular as the fantasia of ‘‘Holy Blood, Holy Grail,’’ or, for that matter, as ‘‘The Da Vinci Code.’’ The only thing more powerful than a worldwide conspiracy, it seems, is our desire to believe in one.
Yet, a credulous public will believe it. And do you think Ron Howard will get the proctology exam over his film version of DVC that Mel Gibson has been getting over The Passion? I don’t think so.
That ridiculous book has made it’s way around our parish-and the parish staff. I’m glad someone-other than the faithful Catholics, who get called “shrill” is taking it apart for it’ s lack of intelligence and honest investigation, “fiction” or not.
Burn the thing.