Headline:
Leonardo scholars remain faithful to the scientist

I love mystery adventures.

I discovered Dan Brown a few years back and have never been unhappy. His books could also fall into the category of suspense, thriller. Whatever genre you wish to place his novels into, the point here is that they are just that.

Novels. Fictions created to entertain. Fictions. I really enjoy historical novels too. New places, and eras I would not have otherwise visited are a great distraction from my addiction to politics.

So much for curing my addiction though, since this novel which I so enjoyed just a couple of years ago, has ended up being one of the most politically charged points of discussion I have heard in a long time. Or, at least since the release of Mel Gibson's Passion of the Christ.

Is Dan Brown as good as Tom Clancy? No. But, he is on his way to being so.

His style is more similar to the breathless suspense of Jeffrey Deaver (The Bone Collector), but his his sense of place and time can be compared to Michael Crichton, and his addictions to conspiracy can be compared to Robin Cook. The uproar over The Da Vince Code just boggles my mind.

*Note to self: try to be an iconoclast, write a book that includes religious and historical icons. Then, give them the Douglas Adams treatment.

If the brewha-ha by the Religious Right wasn't enough to make your skin crawl, the latest rants from scientists and historical scholars should make you realize that orthodoxy of any ilk must be questioned and challenged at every possible opportunity!

I return to the '70's Counter Culture Mantra: "Think for yourself and question authority"- Timothy Leary.

Brown has done both a favor and huge disservice to hundreds of Leonardo da Vinci scholars, researchers and aficionados by casting the artist as the nucleus of a vast, religious conspiracy that spans the centuries -- a kind of Oliver Stone of the Renaissance. The Da Vinci Code certainly has helped fuel the popular interest in all things da Vinci, from lectures to exhibits to documentaries. But scholars now have the task of explaining to the general public that Leonardo was a thoughtful, meticulous and inspired scientist, not a stealth artist who loaded his paintings with cryptic hints.

Science & Theology News - Leonardo scholars remain faithful to the scientist

crossposted on my blog