The DaVinci Code

[Alicia]

The worst book in a very long time--the writing doesn't rise to the quality of a Nancy Drew novel, the plot is nearly hilariously implausible, not to mention unsupported by its own constructs, the characters wooden or simply ridiculous and purposeless (The Albino). Peer pressure made me read it. Why, yes, Virginia, a million readers can be wrong.

[Elise]

I agree about the apalling writing, though I think the basic general shape of the plot could be turned into a good book by a half-decent writer - as long as they removed some of the worst of the over-blown implausible elements.

This is the only book on my list with 1 star.

[Mary Ann]

I could not even finish this--the boredom was killing me. Apparently, the film wasn't good; one review I read said that watching it was like, "Watching your grandparents play Sudoku."

[Chris]

I quite liked the book. The movie was crap, though.

[Chris]

Shelley wrote: "I kinda liked the book too Chris. The movie is awful and not even worthy of a redbox freebie rental.

Had Langdon's role been played with Forest Gump, it might have been tolerable."

Haha, totally. It just wasn't the kind of book that translates to film very well. Too much of the information is mentally processed and there wasn't much action. It would probably have made a good TV series.

[Maggie]

I quite liked the book too - okay, its not the best written book but its not that bad, a page turner. The film wasn't so good - Tom Hanks and Audrey Tatou weren't right for the roles.

[She-ra's]

I liked the book, hated the film, hated all the history and discovery channel specials that it spawned, hated all the non-bibliophiles who couldn't tell you the distinction between prose and plot trying to clumsily plod their way through psuedo-intellectual conversations about the book, hated everyone that saw the movie and pretended they read the book, hated the massive landslide of copycatting that ruined the entire thriller that teaches you a thing or two genre... AND I ESPECIALLY HATED "THE LOST SYMBOL"- ONE OF THE MOST TERRIBLE FOLLOW UPS EVER! IT'S AKIN TO THE BEATLES FOLLOWING "THE WHITE ALBUM" UP WITH "KEVIN FEDERLINE SINGS BIBLICAL CHILDRENS SONGS AFTER INHALING HELIUM WHILE ORANGUTANS ARGUE LOUDLY IN THE BACKGROUND"

[Melisa]

I actually liked the book, until the very end. The ending is just crap. It's like Dan Brown was in a hurry to finish it and couldn't continue with it, got bored and there, that's the ending.

[Chris]

Good God Dan Brown is an awful writer! He makes James Patterson look like a literary gold-spinner. Someone (I have since made an effort to strike their name out of memory) once recommended me The Da-Vinci Code, claiming that it was a "mystery for intelligent people"

.......Really? A lobotomized Rhesus monkey with Down Syndrome would have no troubles with Brown's childish and overtly-simplistic prose, said Rhesus monkey could probably pick apart Brown's "devious plot twists" within a heartbeat as well.

Dan Brown....easily gets my vote as one of the worst writers I have had the displeasure of reading....and a good indicator of why I distrust most forms of "popular" fiction.

Don't get me wrong....sometimes mindless entertainment is nice. But don't try to pass off your sophomoric work as some deep, meaningful thing. You just come off looking like a douche.