Trade Paperback
208 pages
Mar 2006
Bethany House Publishers

Review  |   Author Bio  |  Read an Excerpt

Review:

Dan Brown claims that though The DaVinci Code is fiction, its history, theology, and art are true, but are they? Most of us don't remember our history or art classes well enough to know, but James L. Garlow, Timothy Paul Jones, and April Williams are here to help in The DaVinci Codebreaker.

The DaVinci Codebreaker is a fact checker that has over 500 facts and terms set up in alphabetical order. They provide information on topics as diverse as Gothic architecture, Divine Proportion (math), the Edict of Milan, Gnosticism, Serapion of Antioch, and Mark Oxbrow. The authors explain the entries and frequently relate them to The DaVinci Code. The entry on the reasons certain manuscripts were included in or excluded from the biblical canon is lengthy and interesting and includes a chart. Many of the other entries are surprisingly interesting also. Reading this is not like sitting down to read through your average dictionary.

Garlow, the co-author with Peter Jones of Cracking DaVinci's Code, explains the birth of this book and Brown's apparent motivations. "If Brown has an agenda, what is it? To destroy, as best he can, the credibility of orthodox Christianity by refuting two themes: the authenticity and reliability of the New Testament, and the full divinity of Jesus. Overarching both is the redefinition of God."(12)

Having read neither The DaVinci Code nor any other books exposing it, I believe reading through The DaVinci Codebreaker has prepared me fairly well to deal with the book's proponents. If I do choose to read The DaVinci Code, I will want this book handy to refute Brown's claims of accuracy and to explain obscure references. – Debbie W. Wilson, Christian Book Previews.com

Book Jacket:

What is the truth about…

• Jesus: Was he married and the father of a daughter?
• Mary Magdalene: Was she Jesus’ choice to lead the church until some men took it away from her?
• Christianity: Did it really borrow everything from paganism?
• Women: Did the church really kill 5 million females?
• The Mona Lisa and The Last Supper: Do these paintings contain secret clues?

This easy-to-use fact checker provides answers to the questions readers most often ask about The Da Vinci Code. Historically and theologically correct explanations are given for the more than 500 entries that include terms, concepts, people, locations, and events.

Arranged alphabetically, dictionary style, this book is a must for thoughtful readers who seek more information about the claims of the novel and film.