Il simbolo perduto

Morire di suspense. Morire affogati da un oceano di parole. Odiare i caratteri scritti, quelle lunghe, infinite righe nere su sfondo bianco che riempiono la nostra vita tenendoci compagnia per gran parte della giornata. È questo il giudizio, in sintesi, dell’ultimo libro di Dan Brown, il best seller “Il simbolo perduto”.

Con questo romanzo torna a calcare i freddi pavimenti delle librerie di tutto il mondo il tuttologo Robert Langdon, uno che ci mette mezza nottata a risolvere enigmi che, secondo la prosa di Dan Brown, le menti più celebri dell’umanità intera – da Newton a Galilei passando per Durer, Washington e chissà chi altro – hanno celato mediante le loro opere, i loro scritti, i loro edifici, i loro quadri. “Il simbolo perduto” è un disco rotto, un vecchio ritornello, un canovaccio sempre identico a se stesso, incapace di mutare e di rinnovarsi e che da “Il codice da Vinci” passando per il precedente “Angeli e demoni” fino giù giù a quest’ultimo libro ci ripropone uno schema consolidato in accordo al vecchio adagio calcistico secondo cui squadra che vince non si cambia. Libro che vende si riscrive. Bella merda.

Se con il Codice si scorrazzava per mezza Europa su Suv e jet privati, se con “Angeli e demoni” si correva in una Roma stranamente priva di traffico, con “Il simbolo perduto” non ci si muove da una Washington notturna e a tratti pure suggestiva. Il centro della narrazione ruota intorno allo Smithsonian Museum e quella zona lì che, francamente, a me che nella capitale USA non ci sono mai stato dice ben poco. Come già per i precedenti romanzi, infatti, sarebbe stata particolarmente utile alla lettura un inserto fotografico contenente i luoghi e le opere di cui il libro parla. Perché bisogna essere onesti, gli enigmi artistici con cui Dan Brown dissemina i suoi scritti sono intriganti, ti spingono a cercare su Google questa o quell’opera per osservare con i propri occhi proprio quel dettaglio che ci era sfuggito e intorno al quale, diversamente, l’autore americano ci costruisce qualche centinaia di pagine di storia. Ha ragione il regista Ron Howard in una intervista rilasciata per i contenuti extra della versione Blu Ray di “Angeli e demoni”, il principale merito di Dan Brown è quello di stuzzicare la nostra curiosità inducendoci a condurre delle ricerche personali e, in tale maniera, ad avvicinarci ad opere nuove e a noi sconosciute oppure a riscoprirne di vecchie ma con occhi nuovi. Infatti è proprio la parte centrale del libro, quella che segue fedelmente il canovaccio di cui dicevamo sopra che, seppur senza grosse novità, si lascia leggere, scorre veloce grazie anche a capitoli brevi e, come sempre, interrotti sul più bello. Sembra di assistere ad una puntata di Voyager, con Roberto (Robert) Giacobbo (Langdon) che ti fa due palle così su questa e quella domanda, ti porta di qua e di là ma non ti dà mai la risposta. Dopo un po’ ti scoglioni. Vanno bene le domande, ma ogni tanto sarebbe bene far seguire anche qualche risposta, non vi pare?

Quindi, macinando pagine su pagine, misteri su misteri, galoppiamo verso la conclusione del romanzo e qui torniamo all’inizio della nostra recensione. Parole, parole, parole e ancora parole. Langdon da buon supereroe ha sconfitto tutti i cattivi, poi, cazzo, è così intelligente che mica può essere ancora tenuto all’oscuro dei potenti misteri, in questo caso, della massoneria. Ci mancherebbe. Quindi deve scoprire una parola, la Parola Magica (abracadabra?), di cui il Gran Maestro della massoneria è a conoscenza. Potrebbe dirgliela punto e basta. E no, troppo facile. Altre cento pagine, noiosissime, in cui non si capisce una minchia, in cui ci viene detto che i maghi che Striscia la Notizia sputtana ogni sera hanno invece veri poteri, se avete un tumore mica dovete andare da Umberto Veronesi, figuratevi, meglio il mago Oronzo. Ovviamente è un romanzo e rivendico il diritto della fiction di inventarsi quello che vuole, dalle astronavi, a Narnia, alle porte spazio-tempo. Però rivendico contestualmente il mio diritto di lettore di dire che quella invenzione narrativa è una cagata pazzesca. E mi aspetto anche i 92 minuti di applausi.

Mi risulta incomprensibile come un prodotto destinato al grande pubblico, fatto apposta per essere comprato da chi non compra mai libri possa essere scivolato così banalmente sulla buccia di banana della prolissità che si trasforma in noia ineliminabile. “Il simbolo perduto” è un tomazzo di 600 pagine, di cui almeno 200 potevano essere tagliate senza nulla togliere al racconto, alla suspense, all’ammiccamento al lettore. O forse quelle 200 pagine inutili giustificano i 7 euro in più di prezzo di copertina per il libro probabilmente più venduto dell’anno. Regge come ipotesi? E intanto l’Amazzonia ringrazia.

Capa de "O Símbolo Perdido" e seu autor, Dan Brown (Reprodução)

Se você é fã do escritor Dan Brown, autor dos sucessos “O Código Da Vinci”, “Anjos e Demônios”, “Fortaleza Digital” e “Ponto de Impacto”, já pode ficar feliz: o mais novo trabalho do norte-americano, “O Símbolo Perdido”, será lançado no Brasil nos próximos dias.

A tiragem inicial para o mercado brasileiro é de 800 mil cópias… muito acima do que é padrão para primeira impressão de um livro no país, que normalmente gira em torno de 4 mil exemplares.

“O Símbolo Perdido” já é um grande sucesso no mercado editorial, tendo vendido mais de 2 milhões de exemplares nos EUA, Canadá e Reino Unido somente em sua primeira semana de lançamento.

O novo livro conta mais uma vez as aventuras do simbologista de Harvard, Robert Langdon, em uma trama que se passa em Washington e envolve segredos da maçonaria e símbolos ocultos.

Ao contrário dos livros anteriores, que foi visto como um ultraje pelo Vaticano e a Igreja Católica, “O Símbolo Perdido” foi bem recebido pela maçonaria, uma organização fraterna, datada aproximadamente do século 16 e com cerca de 4 a 5 milhões de maçons em todo o mundo.
Segundo Greg Levenston, grão-mestre da loja maçônica Unida de Nova Gales do Sul e do Território Australiano Capital dos Maçons, trata-se de um trabalho de um “romancista tremendo”. “Estamos muito satisfeitos. Não há nada neste livro que vá ofender minha organização. Isto nos proporciona a oportunidade de nos abrirmos um pouco”, completa.

Na cola do sucesso de “O Código Da Vinci”
O grande sucesso editorial de Dan Brown é “O Código Da Vinci”, que vendeu mais de 81 milhões de cópias desde o seu lançamento em 2003 e encabeçou praticamente todas as listas de ‘os mais vendidos’ no mundo.
Também foi adaptado com sucesso para os cinemas em 2006, em produção estrelada por Tom Hanks e dirigida por Ron Howard. O filme, mesmo sendo ruim, não decepcionou nas bilheterias e arrecadou quase US$ 760 milhões…

Mas, mesmo com tamanho sucesso, o livro foi apontado pela equipe do suplemento de literatura do jornal inglês “The Times” como o pior livro da década. Curiosamente, “O Código Da Vinci” também ocupa a 10ª posição na lista dos melhores livros da década.

A adaptação de “O Símbolo Perdido” para os cinemas já está em progresso…

Two days ago I got an email from Stephanie Frasco who is working on a project for the History Channel.  They are searching for lead investigators to host a tv series documentary on the topic of American symbology/iconography. It is called Decoded. She asked me to post this link in case anyone reading this blog post is interested to participate. They are looking for a real life Robert Langdon. If you are compatible with Dan Brown, you should contact them. As for myself, I am just a Deleuzian minded guy who attempts to circumscribe the overcoding of the signifying regime (the Dan Brown kind of iconographical analyzes). My decoding is of another sort than they are looking for. I attempt to show that there is no master signifier whereas Langdon is all about finding the master signifier.

This is the second to last day of my blog tour. I wasn’t sure I’d manage to do all the work — 52 stops in 35 days. When you count the posts I did here to promote the tour, that means I wrote eighty-seven articles in five weeks. Whew! I truly did not intend the tour to be so long and involved — somehow it just took off on its own. I have a lot of sleep to catch up on — too many late nights – but the tour was worth it. Not in sales so much, but in what I learned about my books, me, other blogs. Because of all the interviews, I had to think about where I came from in regards to writing, and where I want to go. It turned out to be quite intensive. I do not recommend such a long tour, however. A week or two is sufficient.

Today I am at Book Reader’s Heaven with Glenda Bixler talking about My Books, My Way: Experiences With a Small Independent Publisher. It’s a bit ironic. Yesterday I started reading Dan Brown’s Demons & Angels for no other reason than I somehow ended up with the book, and it struck me that the main difference between small presses and the large corporate publishers is the distribution capacity the big guys have. It certainly is not quality. I have seen some excellent books published by small presses, and Demons & Angels doesn’t even come close.  There are way too many inconsistencies, both internal and external.

Robert Langdon is supposed to be an intelligent fellow, knowledgable about symbols, yet when he finds out that physicists are trying to answer such questions as where we came from, what life is made of, and the meaning of the universe, he is astounded. Why? That’s what physics is. Or what it does. Any halfway educated person knows that. He’s also astounded when he discovers that a scientist was also a priest. Why? If he knows anything at all about ancient symbols, he would know that many of today’s religious symbols were ancient scientific symbols. He would also know that the “priests” in ancient times were scientists — science was religion, or perhaps religion was science — and that the division between church and science is a relatively new occurence. This post is not supposed to be a dissertation on religion, but a refutation of Langdon’s character. He simply would not have been surprised if he was as smart and knowledgable as he was supposed to be.

Perhaps that example is a bit esoteric. So try this: the scientists explain to Langdon that a bit of anti-matter  is suspended in the center of a container, held there by two magnetic fields. Yet when Langdon looks for the bit of matter, he searches for it on the bottom of the container, and then is surprised to find it suspended in the center of the container. Sheesh. If that’s the kind of writing that is acceptable to corporate publishers, I’m glad not to be a part of it. Though I wouldn’t mind a bit of their cash.

If you want to know why I am glad to be published by a small independent press, you can find the article here: My Books, My Way: Experiences With a Small Independent Publisher.

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Ett konto är registrerat. Med ett namn som syftar till mitt postnummer samt den första bokstaven i postorten. Varför jag valde det vet ja inte riktigt, kanske blev jag inspirerad av Robert Langdon och Sophie Neveu i Da Vinci koden. Som jag till skillnad från de flesta andra precis börjat läsa. Inte för att det på något sätt bör jämföras med en ordlek där man med hjälp av 8 omkastade tal som hör hemma i Fibbonaccis talföljd ska lista ut hur man ska flytta om bokstäverna i 4 ord för att få fram det egentliga budskapet.

Men(!) ett namn är det. Ett namn med siffror och en bokstav. Ett namn som syftar till min adress och vill man så kan man även få fram min ålder genom att se varje tal som enskilt och sen addera dem med varandra. Men allra mest, ett ganska fult bloggnamn.

Äh. Vi börjar så här och ser vad det leder till. Förhoppningsvis ger det mig något att fördriva tiden med när jag har för mycket av det som de flesta hårt arbetande vill ha mer av -fritid. Och eftersom jag under en vecka jobbar i snitt 18.66% av veckans alla timmar så bör det ju inte vara en omöjlighet att det uppdateras någorlunda frekvent här på 671 50 A.

F

A week back, I woke up from a deep sleep early in the wee hours of the morning to find myself lying in the bed, clutching the pillow tight.

Thank God I’m back, Home – This is what I thought for some time and then slowly recalled what I saw scene by scene…

***

The living area seemed to be so familiar.

Yes!!!!! It’s my home. Something was bothering me. Yes, The world outside is going to come to an end. But how? That’s the question which pricked my heart. I was searching frantically for some book.

I shouted, “It’s there in the book. It is written how the thing will happen”.

I searched the book, without knowing, what the book is all about. I kept reminding myself the page number in which it was written. I looked at all places. Finally spotted my computer table in which I found the book intact with the surface of the table. I could feel the chill gush of air in the face. I could feel the electric pulse travelling from the central spine to all over the nerve junctions. I advanced towards the table to pick it up and open the page in which the thing was written. I wanted to read that single page which decided the next few moments. I felt, the world outside will any time get destroyed. I could imagine the cracks appearing in the roads ready for its destruction and its journey in to the deep unfathomable cavity extending underneath the surface!

I extend my hands to reach for the book. The scene changes!!! **Sigh**

***

I walk in a big campus resembling the Infy campus in MCity. I could see big posh buildings, dazzling in blue and green glasses, reflecting the sunlight which appears to be some known university in a foreign country. I walk with my thick blue jeans with a full sleeved turtleneck T shirt covered with a long brownish cloak covering my body till the knees. I could see myself walking hurriedly towards a glass door entrance with an old book covered with parchment type of hard bounded cover and an ancient symbol beveled in its cover in the center. I read a particular page with some unknown symbols and markings scribbled in the top empty space in the page. I kept walking along the pathway into the Corridor, where I could spot few other boys and girls strolling randomly towards various entrances to halls.

I was about to turn the next page, just them someone who passed by me, snatched the book from my hand closing it and then stuffed back to me saying

“Don’t read all this here. It’s barred here. Don’t you know?”

I looked at him in bewilderment and snapped back, “Why is it that? Can’t you see I’m reading things and see the symbols I’ve noted down, here?”

He didn’t seem to show any interest in my argument. He picked up his mobile and walked away. I kept looking at him and suddenly I rushed towards the staircase in the corridor and kept walking in it until I reached a room which appeared to be a classroom. It was full of students. I thought I was going to give some lectures to them and I did not feel like a student in the university which I had thought earlier. I was about to enter the classroom, just then the scene changes again

***

I was walking in the streets of Triplicane looking at the things around me. This is my place where I stay in Chennai currently, for the past 12 years. Now, I had reached the road which was perpendicular to our street. I marched forward looking at the world outside my house. It seemed to be normal but as I crossed two junctions which came in between, I could see the cars and almost all the vehicles are parked in the traffic as it is. Nothing seemed to move. Looking straight ahead, I could see an array of vehicles jammed in the road and it was crowded as if some disaster is scheduled to happen.

I walk past various cars and autos parked in the middle of the road. I was terrified. I still couldn’t visualize the disaster that’s going to happen. As all chennaites know very well that, Triplicane is situated near the Marina beach and it is walkable distance from the place, I need not explain where the beach is. I kept advancing towards the end of the road. I could see many people standing outside their houses and looking at things very uneasily. There were lots of worried faces which I could easily spot. Almost all of them have come out and were holding feared looks in the faces.

I didn’t know how far I walked; suddenly I could see the sea and its water level has risen considerably. I didn’t know, Marina beach encroached this much of land beside it. The   water level was deliberately high. Usually, whenever I look at the beach, standing on the shores, facing the waters, I had always looked down as the shores are always elevated. But for the first time in my life, I’m looking up at an elevation angle of about 60 degrees above the normal eye sight. I couldn’t digest the fact that, I’m not standing in the shores which will be usually sandy where we can find Sundal hawker, boats, ice cream and Balloon Shooting stalls and a sparsely distributed population of affectionate duos performing the intimate game plays in the vast open space, but I’m standing in the well polished tar roads which were laid for the last week parliamentary elections.

I could see the waters have engulfed the dry sandy shores into its buoyancy and people are standing in the road that runs parallel to it. In no time, I could hear the waves emitting a mystical hum and the water body visible to my eyes started ebbing out. The clouds above the water body took weird shapes and darkened. I couldn’t control my fearful excitement. The darkened clouds formed a weird image resembled to be a face of a human being, like that of lord Voldemort’s image used to appear in the sky whenever death eaters cast the dark symbol in Harry Potter series. I immediately took out my mobile from my shorts and launched the Camera application in it (I’m still confused as to why I wanted to take the picture of that face in the sky, when the world is about to come to an end). I did not know from where did my mobile come into my short’s pocket. I never remembered carrying it with me, when I started from home. Well dreams always leave you with many questions unanswered.

I took out my cell, gazed the sky and tried clicking the image and the whole devastating scene in front of my eyes that nobody could imagine – A sea ebbing out which is already at a higher elevation than the usual one and ready to pounce on the human population and engulfing the lands, pulling everything inside it. But the time I was to register what is happening, I found myself inside the water, floating in an unknown height and depth. I went unconscious and suddenly the scene changed as usual

***

I was clutching very lightly without any efforts, the outer surface of a huge cylindrical hollow tower edifice which can hold 2 to 3 persons vertically in its hollow circular enclosure, situated at some safe distance from the beach. I could see the water body flowing into the lands and roads underneath it, getting slowly swallowed by the demonic waves. I still hold the metallic edifice clutching its cylindrical surface on its top and yelling at the image which appeared in the sky .

“Let it happen the way you wanted. I’ll see what can be done.” I challenged the dark face.

I could feel some force which was holding me close to the cylindrical structure. I felt easy to be held in its proximity, myself at the topmost part of it. I did not hold it tight. I was just spreading my hands around it and the circumference was so large that, I couldn’t hold my palms of both my hands, together on the other side. So you can imagine how I was being held to its surface like a magnetic levitated train in its electromagnetic tracks. To be very simple, I felt like spiderman sticking to the surface of the tower. Well I nested a small pride in me to have challenged some evil force which was trying to destroy the world by agitating the water body of world’s second largest beach!! (Heights of dreaming!!)

Now I started descending down the pillar and felt as how I’ve been operated by someone. I drifted smoothly in the cylindrical surface without being held anywhere or suffering intense pain or scratch. The bright world outside slowly started disappearing and an enclosure has started appearing around the pillar. I was descending down in the hollow space between the enclosure and the hollow pillar like structure. The darkness has already surrounded me. But I could see an aura of light around me, just me alone. I could see the inscriptions which has been inscribed on the edifice surface. I was still descending down. I was comfortable descending down as how the elevators descend down the floors. Suddenly, I remembered something was written beside the image which I saw in the sky, the darkened image f0rmed by the clouds. I wanted to recall that. So in that instant, I was again ascending upward the edifice. I reached the top of the tower again. I could see the sea and the terrific waters flowing mercilessly into the city. The city was getting heavily water logged. Slowly the roads, houses, and buildings have started disappearing in the water. I could again see the face and the text which was formed beside it through the dark clouds. Satisfied, I again descended down the tower effortlessly.

To my surprise, I found this undeniable truth that, it was none other than me who was controlling my traverse upward and downward. Nobody was controlling it. I felt as if I’m controlling my life and my dream. I could clearly see that I’m in a dream and I could do all weird things like controlling my traverse up and down by just giving a thought about it. I calmed myself and held the pillar close to me and started my descend down into the deep hollow black space that lay beneath me. This cylindrical pillar was my only ray of hope and light to this journey of descend, which I’ve been subjected myself to. I found myself getting into a state of mental stability. The downward journey into the vast pitch black hollow beneath me was happening at ease. I was breathing normally.

It would have been some hours of time ticked away. I still found myself descending into the oblivion. Suddenly the velocity at which I was travelling encountered retardation in the motion and the journey came to a halt as my feet touched a solid base of something.

I detached myself from the structure which was holding me all throughout the journey and looked down to get a view of staircase. The staircase was made of metal with the most intricate artistic works in its design. The spiral steps looked very ancient like that of the steps in the British style bungalows0. I was involuntarily getting down the steps and I reached the doors which seemed to be half open. I reminded myself about preparing for some lecture to be given to students who have gathered in a large seminar hall. I quickly entered the door to find a bunch of foreign university students waiting for someone. As soon as I entered the hall, they started moving towards a particular classroom which seemed to be attached with the hall. The hall was brightly ventilated with the gleaming yellowish ambience spreading all over the hall.

I walked in to one of the classrooms. I could see around five to six students who were sitting opposite to each other in the class room tables and were chatting. The girls were in their sleeveless tights and jeans and were excited seeing me in the class. It looked as if a gang of friends were chatting happily in the recess break after a session of lecture. I happily joined them remembering my own college days. They welcomed me with “yaay…yo”. In that group, one of the girls looked at me. I was confused as whether I’m a professor who is visiting this campus for a guest lecture or a student who has enrolled for a course in MS in some weird discipline say Symbology in some foreign university in UK. Images of Dan brown and Robert Langdon hovered in front of me. I could recollect the pages I have read from the “The Lost Symbol” last night in the bus. The way he has explained the interior of the US Capitol building was haunting my mind. The girl came to me. She was nearing me. I knew what she is about to do. She had a titillating looks in her face. She looked stunningly beautiful. I couldn’t resist the delay. I wanted to go and grab her and….

I woke up with a heavy pounding heart. Searched for my mobile and saw the time. It was 3.30 AM. I opened my eyes completely, chafed it twice or thrice and kept thinking about what I saw. I remembered many things immediately post dream – 2012, Movie trailer, 2012 theories, The Lost Symbol, Dan Brown, Robert Langdon, Harry potter, Infy Campus, my willingness to do an MBA abroad, interest in cryptography, passion for getting a new mobile touch screen mobile and many other things which I’m so passionate about. These things have collectively shown its face in various events.

***

Well, I recalled everything and dozed off. Usually we used to forget what we see in the dreams as soon as we get up in the morning. But this dream I really wanted remember. I wanted to blog about this. It may look very silly but still I wanted this to write this somewhere and share with others. For those who think this is all crap and I’m so silly, I admit I’m silly and don’t wanted to be in one of those mature grown up frowning serious male category. And for all those who enjoyed this, let me know what you felt about this.

in “the davinci code”, dan brown raised an interesting conjugation of the words “holy grail” in latin. if one reads “san greal” it literally translates in to “sainted cup”, or “holy grail”, but if one moves a single letter of the phrase, the meaning undergoes a startling metamorphosis. “sang real” translates to “royal blood”, and with this clue, robert langdon was off on his chase to find the descendant of the virgin mary. most people don’t realize it, but baseball actually predates abner doubleday by thousands of years. the old testament makes 3 specific references to baseball. biblical scholars can confirm that abraham was about to sacrifice isaac (via a bunt?) before god intervened. the second is when rachel brought a pitcher to the well. it did not state whether the pitcher was a starter or reliever, not did it specify lefty or a righty. the 3rd and most quoted reference is what brings us to the title of this chapter.

“in the beginning”, or “in the big inning”. it doesn’t matter which you chose, because in this case, they are one and the same.  i know this because i was there. the ascendancy of the 2009 new york yankees began in the 4th inning of a game between the yankees and the boston red sox on a muggy thursday evening in early august.  some people will say it started when alex rodriguez rejoined the team in may, hit a 3 run homer in his first at bat and started protecting mark teixeira. some say it was when phil hughes was sent to the bullpen and became the 8th inning “bridge” to rivera, and yet others point to the interleague game that the lackluster yanks were playing against the braves when joe gerardi got thrown out and the team caught fire. valid opinions, to be sure, but not “the big inning”. even after winning 8 straight games after the all star break, even though they were in first place at the time, the yankees had been beaten by boston 8 times in a row.  the media could not broadcast this statistic often enough.  zero and 8.  every mention raised the hackles on the necks of yankee fans everywhere.  the thursday game started like the previous 8.  boston scored first, with dustin pedroia, their previous year’s mvp, hit a home run in the top of the 3rd inning.  john smoltz, their “reclamation project”, a multiple cy young winner was on the mound.  ana and i arrived at the stadium late that night, and as we were just picking up our tickets, we heard a massive groan coming from inside the stadium.  this was boston’s next to last shining moment.  the yankees went ahead temporarily in the bottom of the 3rd inning, but victor martinez, the red sox’s newly acquired catcher, hit a home run in the top of the 4th to give boston the lead for the last time that weekend.

in the bottom of the 4th inning, the yankees scored 8 runs and have not looked back since.  they knocked smoltz out of the box so soundly that he was released by the team the next day.  the yankees went on to silence the critics as they not only beat boston, they swept the enemies from the north. as badly beaten as boston was in the first game of the series, the second and third games broke their spirit with a string of 21 scoreless innings and the fourth broke their backs. alex rodriguez who has been (rightfully) criticized as choking in the clutch came through on friday (actually it was saturday morning by then) with a dramatic bottom of the 15th inning home run after josh beckett and a.j. burnett hurled zeros throughout the night. c.c. sabathia turned in a shutout performance on sunday and andy pettitte and the yanks put the final nails in the coffin on monday. the yankees did exactly the same thing to the red sox other winter acquisition, brad penny, when they would play in fenway later that month. penny was released by the team as well. the cursed sox would never recover.

even after the yankees manhandled the red sox, the critics, wringing their hands, still lamented “what about the angels”? the angels had swept the yankees in the final 3 games before the all star break. during their next meeting, however, the yankees took a chapter from the angel’s playbook and beat the angels at their own game. in fact, the yankees took the final 3 out of 4 games they played against the angels, after taking the final 9 out of 10 from the redsox.

the yankees still had some things to accomplish as they continued to amass the best post all star record in the majors. they wanted to have the best record in baseball so as to guarantee home field advantage throughout the playoffs (which they were rapidly approaching, after missing the post season last year for the first time since the strike shortened year of 1994). late in september, they acheived the trifecta of 100 wins, the best record in the majors and clinching the a.l. east (against boston) in their last regular season home game. they headed into the postseason loaded for bear and chomping at the bit. it just wasn’t clear at that point who they would be chomping the bit against. minnesota beat the tigers in a dramatic one game playoff and i think more than a few yankee fans were relieved. the yankees had been trounced by the tigers the last time they competed in the 2006 alds, and minnesota provided a suitable opponent, having been beaten by the yankees often in post season play.

the big question on everyone’s mind was how would a-rod do this time? since game 3 of the 2004 alcs against boston, rodriguez’s bat had been m.i.a. in the post season. everyone thought that we were in for more of the same, when he struck out his first 2 plate appearances in the alds. then, on his third at bat, he woke from a 5 year slumber and put up some of the most amazing clutch hits in recent yankee history. riding on his coattails, the yankees swept minnesota in the alds. the victory in the third and final game was again, somewhat of a “revenge” game , because the yankees beat carl pavano, the “american idle”. pavano had been signed to the yankees for a 4 year, 40 million dollar contract in the before the 2005 season. he spent the vast majority of those 4 years on the disabled list, suffering from one injury after another, until he became both a running joke in the tabloids and a pariah in the clubhouse. the next step was the alcs, which the yankees had not won since the famous aaron boone home run against the red sox in 2003. to everyone’s amazement, the angels swept boston and were heading to new york, where they would face the yankees in their first alcs since the debacle of 2004. a lot of people were disappointed that boston did not advance, as that would have given the yankees revenge for the great meltdown of 2004, and the way the yanks abused the redsox for the second half of the season, that victory would have been extra sweet. until this year, the red sox had done to the angels what the the angels had done to the yankees in the post season…beat them….easily. this year it was different. the sudden death of the angels young pitcher nick adenhart, brought the team together with a laser-like focus and energized the team. they won the american league west with a record almost as good as the yankees. this was to be the acid test and a-rod, along with the other new members of the team passed….with flying colors. the yankees were back in the world series for the first time since 2003 and were favored to win, even though their opponents were the current world champion philadelphia phillies.
the common wisdom is that good pitching will always beat good hitting and once you reach the world series, pitching and defense wins. the yankees played throughout the playoffs the way they had played all year: smart baserunning and a minimum of errors on the field. their opponents, however, did not. teams like the twins and the angels stress baseball basics such as when to try and take an extra base, when to steal and when to force the other team to make plays to get outs. they did not follow these guidelines while playing the yankees in october. they all made amateur-like baserunning gaffes and costly errors on the field. it helped that their leadoff hitters, chone figgins and jimmy rollins respectively, were pretty much invisible during the alcs and world series. our leadoff hitter, derek jeter, only hit over .400 during the championship series and over .350 during the world series, including 3 home runs. jeter only hit 18 homers during the regular season. if you extrapolate that number through the number of games in the regular season, his home run production would have approached a-rods this year! it almost seems that as fantastically as he plays ordinarily, he can turn it up a notch, seemingly at will, when the post season comes around. the “core four” as they have come to be known, jeter, posada, pettitte and rivera were all major contributors for this 27th title, but special mention must be given to rivera. he is the only closer that did not have meltdown this year. all the other closers the yankees faced either blew saves or blew games. mariano rivera is why the yankees are on top where they belong again. we all know how the season ended, but now we know how (and when) it really began.

Ik ben net klaar met “Het Verloren Symbool” van Dan Brown.

Mijn ervaring met Dan Brown was totnogtoe slecht. Ik ben ooit begonnen aan Angels en Demons, en heb binnen vier bladzijden zo vaak  “Naaaaa!” of ” Tsjesses!” en ”Aaaah neee!” gedacht en geroepen om zoveel verschillende vormen van narigheid, dat die poging bij vier bladzijden gebleven is. Het is dus met angst en beven dat ik mij, omwille van dit blog, gewaagd heb aan De Nieuwe Dan Brown. Nog meer helaas: Marcel heeft hem om een of andere reden in het Nederlands meegenomen, wat de “Aaaah neee!”-factor bij voorbaat al verdubbelt.

Ik sloeg hem zojuist dicht en zei voor de zoveelste keer ” Aaaaah nee!”, of in elk geval iets wat daarop neerkomt.

“Is hij zo slecht als je dacht?’ vroeg Marcel. Daar moest ik even over nadenken.

Waar gaat dit boek over? Nou- een Gevaarlijke Gek die te kennen geeft dat hij een of andere soort Perfectie Wil Bereiken dumpt de met Occulte Tekenen betatoeërde rechterhand hand van de stinkend rijke, waanzinnig deugdzame, onwaarschijnlijk belezen en  erfelijk vrijmetselende Peter Solomon in de Rotunda van het Capitool. Niet helemaal toevallig bevindt zich daar op dat moment Solomons oude vriend Robert Langdon, die als enige in staat lijkt te zijn de Tekenen te Duiden die de Gevaarlijke Gek achterlaat. De CIA bemoeit zich er mee en voordat hij het weet is Robert Langdon onder begeleiding van welwillende vrijmetselaars en de zus van Peter Solomon (die volgens mijn berekeningen ongeveer twaalf uur lang op haar sokken rondloopt- wat niemand, inclusief haarzelf, op lijkt te vallen) op de vlucht voor zowel de CIA als de Gevaarlijke Gek. Langdon sjouwt een vrijmetselaars-artefact met zich mee, dat de weg wijst naar Een Poort naar Hogere Dingen, en dat al gaande wordt geïntepreteerd met behulp van Langdons fenomenale maar weinig verlichte kennis van Symbolen & Wereldgodsdiensten, en van Katherine Solomon heur grote kennis van Noetica (volg de link maar als je het echt moet weten, ik ga niet eens beginnen met uitleggen wat dat is). Iedereen holt, rolstoelt, rijdt en helikoptert in razende vaart op weg naar de ontknoping, die iets te maken heeft met voornoemd vrijmetselaars-artefact en met de steeds luguberder blijkende Apotheose van de Gevaarlijke Gek. De toekomst van de vrijmetselarij staat op het spel! De staatsveiligheid is in het geding! Zullen alle Goeie Jongens overleven? Waar is de rest van Peter Solomon? Aan wiens kant staat CIA-functionaris Inoue Sato eigenlijk? Zal Katherine Solomon ooit weer een paar schoenen vinden?

Zo- hebbie al zin? (Marcel kan niet wachten, zegt hij gniffelend.)

Plottechnisch zit het prima in elkaar. Wat aan het begin wordt beloofd wordt aan het einde geleverd, maar met een paar twists, zoals het hoort. (Ik ben niet een van die mensen die op pagina tien al weet wie het gedaan heeft, dus als jij wel zo bent dan kun je er anders over denken.) Maar ook daar weet Dan Brown het te verkloten. Een van die twists levert het enige schrijnende verhaalelement van het boek; het wereldbeeld van de Gevaarlijke Gek blijkt een geperverteerd spiegelbeeld te zijn van dat van een Goeie Jongen, en dat is niet zonder reden. Ook die ontknoping, die in de handen van een schrijver met een minimum aan oprecht gevoel een hoogtepunt had kunnen zijn, wordt ondergesmeerd met symboliek en nog meer symboliek, en dat impasto wordt bekleedt met gevoelens en achtergronden met de diepgang van een gebruikte tissue. Resultaat: papier maché in plaats van katharsis.

Met de vaart is ook niks mis. De actie galoppeert vrolijk voort, de hoofdstukken zijn kort en snappy, de hoeveelheid bijrollen is te overzien, en je voelt aan je water wie er doodgaat. Robert Langdon is claustrofobisch en wordt dus een aantal keer opgesloten in kleine donkere ruimtes. Allerlei mensen zijn voortdurend onderweg en ze bellen en mailen en sms-en elkaar de hele tijd met vitale info- en ze worden voortdurend onderbroken want een boek moet zijn cliffhangers hebben. Nee, het verhaal gáát als een tierelier.  Het enige wat de actie stremt zijn de infodumps die op elke bladzijde plaatsvinden. Hela, een nieuw teken aan de wand! Gauw, vijfhonderd woorden uitleg van Robert Langdon! Waarna iedereen weer door kan hollen naar de volgende climax.  Die infodumps hebben natuurlijk hun functie. Om te beginnen was het boek de helft dunner zonder al die esoterische poppycock, en ten tweede is voor de  spirituele maar onwetende lezer die net iets meer wil van zijn thrillers dan bloed & gerechtigheid, alles wat Langdon uitbraakt aan esoterische wijsheid gewoon interessant. ER IS MEER, en Dan Brown wijst U de weg. Een slimme zet is hierin, dat hij Robert Langdon wel heel erudiet maakt, maar niet een gelovige van his own supply. De lezer kan dus geïnformeerd worden door de ene persoon in het boek die zich het meest gedraagt als een gewone boerenlul m/v, en verlicht raken door de welwillende meesters en meesteressen te volgen die Langdon geleiden op het pad naar het Licht.

Dus. Is dit boek zo slecht als ik had gedacht? Ja en nee. Het is eerder slecht op de manier die ik had verwacht, dan in de mate die ik had verwacht. Het geheim is namelijk dat Dan Brown schrijft zoals Macdonald’s smaakt. Ik weet dat eten van de Mac slecht is en duur en niet bepaald voedzaam, in elk geval niet op een manier waar mijn lichaam wat aan heeft. Maar ik ben nooit helemaal immuun voor de lokroep van de FishFiletBurger. Welnu; Dan Brown schrijft als een FishFiletBurger. Slap en klef  en onweerstaanbaar zolang als het duurt.  Zijn zinnen zijn krom, zijn personages zijn van bordkarton, de tentoongespreide esoterie is zo goedkoop dat het bijna vunzig is, de infodumps zijn te tellen noch te harden. Ik was me al lezend van dit alles volledig en zeer geërgerd bewust, en toch ben ik door blijven lezen en door blijven lezen tot ik het uit had. Dat ik onderweg af en toe bromde : “Tjesses wat goedkoop,” en “Maar dat is helemaal niet bewezen!” laat onverlet dat ik het boek niet in rechtvaardige toorn aan Naomi heb gegeven om eens lekker in te gaan zitten scheuren, maar dat ik het heb uitgelezen, met enige gretigheid zelfs. Maar op het moment dat ik het boek dichtsloeg dacht ik weer  “Aaaah neee!”; net als wanneer ik een Mac uitloop.

Ik heb de Da Vinci Code niet gelezen, maar ik vrees dat ik dat ooit wel ga doen. Niet zeer binnenkort. Tussen twee FishFiletBurgers moet ook minstens een jaar zitten.

UPDATE: Marcel heeft de schoenen van Katherine Solomon gevonden, onder haar autostoel. Jammer is dat, die kousenvoeten leken zo symbolisch.

Geschafft: Trotz Arbeitsalltag habe ich die 765 Seiten von Dan Browns “Das verlorene Symbol” in vier Tagen verschlungen. Vieles erinnert an Browns vorherige Bestseller Illuminati oder Sakrileg: Man rennt mit dem Protagonisten Robert Langdon von Schauplatz zu Schauplatz und von Rätsel zu Rätsel nur so durch das Buch. Kurze Kapitel mit ansteigender Spannungskurve, die dann kurz vor ihrem Höhepunkt und der Auflösung des Teilrätsels zum Kapitelende zu dem nächsten Handlungsstrang führen. Ja, irgendwie wird man davon angefixt und kommt nicht darum herum, weiter und weiter zu lesen.

Um was geht es? Nachdem Langdon in den Vorgängerbüchern noch durch das alte Europa geschickt wird, handelt die gesamte Geschichte des “Verlorenen Symbols” in der Hauptstadt der mächtigsten Nation der Welt: Washington D.C. Hier wird Langdon von Peter Solomon, bekennendem Freimaurer, zu einem Vortrag eingeladen, den Langdon nie halten wird. Stattdessen findet er Solomons abgetrennte Hand vor, gespickt mit geheimen Symbolen und dem Freimaurerring des 33. Grades. Langdon, Spezialist auf dem Gebiet der Symbolik, taucht nun ein in eine Welt voller Geheimnisse, Symbole und – natürlich – Freimaurern und Bösewichten. Sein dämonischer Widersacher heißt diesmal Mal’akh, dessen Geheimnis Langdon spät – der Leser allerdings etwas früher – erfährt (oder errät . Die ganze Story behandelt lediglich eine Zeitspanne von ca. 10 Stunden.

Brown schafft es definitiv, wenn auch nach exakt dem selben Muster seiner früheren Büchern, den Leser zu fesseln und an sich zu binden. Er verspricht ja auch nichts Geringeres, als die größten Geheimnisse der Welt zu entschlüsseln – die alten Mysterien der Freimaurer und das Wissen um das einzig wahre Wort. Dabei erinnert das ganze Buch an das gute alte Click & Point Adventure, in dem Langdon der Spieler, Mal’akh der Böse, und Katherine Solomon, die hinterher wetzende Frau, die stets an seiner Seite ist, sind. So wird Rätsel um Rätsel geknackt, mit teilweise erstaunlichen Wendungen. Ich habe mir jetzt nicht die Mühe gemacht, alle Anspielungen und Symbole zu ergooglen, aber Brown beherrscht sein Handwerk der Verwirrung und Täuschung des Lesers ganz gut.

Bleibt die Frage: Was kommt als nächstes? Noch so ein “Langdon rennt umher, knackt Rätsel, löst Geheimnisse, doziert Erstaunliches und Unglaubliches, Frau und Bösewicht sind auch dabei und die ganze Welt ist unterwandert von geheimen Mächten”-Buch? Noch so ein Buch, trivial, aber doch so spannend geschrieben, so dass die Seiten nur so fliegen?

Wer anspruchsvolleres sucht, kann ja mal Ecos Foucaultsches Pendel versuchen (dann aber am besten mit dem Schlüssel von Bauco/Millocca), wer selber so ein Geheimnisaufdecker sein will, sollte vielleicht eine Runde Baphomets Fluch spielen und dort Templer jagen.

Trotz hunderttausendfacher Vorbestellungen, Massen-Hype, Kritik, Verriss oder Lobgesang: Mir hat das Lesen Spaß gemacht, auch wenn ich das Ende zu kitschig und etwas plump fand.

Dan Brown
Das Verlorene Symbol

765 Seiten: Gebunden
Verlag: Lübbe
ISBN: 3785723881
Preis: 26 Euro

Du behöver inte vara Harvardprofessor som Robert Langdon för att komma fram till svaren på de stora frågorna.

Du behöver inte vara superfilosof eller högutbildad på de värsta akademiska instutitionerna för att komma fram till de världsliga svaren många av oss söker. I

Inte nu längre.

Här finns en del av svaren på frågorna. Titta och lär!

1. Varför äter man?

Svar; Helt enkelt för att kunna njuta av det goda kaffet man får efteråt.

2. Varför har man sex?

Svar; Kanske för att lite senare kunna titta på TV i lugn och ro.

3. Varför går man till jobbet?

Svar; För annars kommer man ju aldrig hem igen.

OCH SÅ NATURLIGTVIS DEN STÖRSTA FRÅGAN AV DEM ALLA.

4. Vad är meningen med livet?

Svar; Att vi ständigt ska bearbeta den frågan för att sen, en helt underbar dag, gå döden till mötes.

Där finns säkert fler frågor Ni går och grunnar på.
Vet Ni vad, det är bara att höra av sig.

by Dan Brown

I thought this book was better than The Da Vinci Code, but still nothing special. It was a good thriller story with a MUCH better ending than Da Vinci, but it was nothing more than that. One thing I noticed (well, more like it stuck out like a sore thumb), was how similar these two books are. Robert Langdon’s story starts with him being waken up by, as we later learn, one of the main characters. Langdon is involved in a race against time to overthrow some evil religious organization. He has a trusty and sexy sidekick who he falls for. The killer controls an unimportant puppet to do all the dirty work for him. Etcetera etcetera. Robert Langdon is a good character, but not one that deserves this much adoration and books, there are definately thrillers out there which are just as good, if not better. Still, it’s a nice read. 3/5.

Wanna know the best way to hide the fact that you’re not blogging as much as you should be? Have a MUST LIST that encompasses everything you would’ve blogged about over the course of the past few weeks!

The following books, TV shows, movies, and other bits of obscurity should most definitely be checked out by YOU. With no further adieu, I dig the following:

1. Paranormal Activity

The ‘Little Indie Movie That Could’ is continuing to turn heads and scare audiences silly. With a continued nationwide rollout, the film has steadily grossed almost $20 million and currently has an 86% Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. (Not bad for a film that cost only $11,000!)

The movie is original, well-written, and brilliantly acted thanks to newcomers Micah Sloat and Katie Featherston. The kicker? It’s actually fucking scary! This is not one to miss out on in the theaters! Check local listings for showtimes as it’ll continue its reach in the upcoming weeks.

2. The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown

Brown has his fair share of haters, but “The Lost Symbol” is everything you’d want and expect from a Robert Langdon novel, minus Tom Hank’s really bad mullet-thing. In “Symbol,” Langdon is called to Washington D.C. by a friend, only to realize that his friend has been captured by a mad man seeking the portal to The Ancient Mysteries – a hidden vault of wisdom held secret by the Freemasons of America. Langdon must stay ahead of the psycho and uncover the clues in order to save his friend and protect Washington’s many secrets.

Langdon is mainstream fodder by now, but damn is this a page-turner! And it’s cool for the story to finally head to America for a change.

3. “Anvil: The Story of Anvil” DVD

This is the story of two childhood friends and metal heads who have been rockin’ together for 30 years. They’ve inspired bands such as Metallica and Anthrax, and musicians such as Slash and Lemmy, but they never broke or hit the mainstream.  “Anvil: The Story of Anvil” follows the two throughout their everyday lives and tries to examine how a progressive thrash metal band with so much promise never took off.  We see Steve “Lips” Kudlow and Robb Reiner work their boring day jobs while never letting go of their dream. We see remarks from their family, Lars Ulrich, Slash, and fellow co-workers. We see them tour Europe and play to 15 people at a time. In the early 80’s, they once toured with the greats, only to get left behind in the dust waiting for their day to come. But it never did.

The heart and sincerity of this film was quite inspirational. Lips and Reiner’s friendship and the trust they put in each other was touching. Their inability to quit and support from their loved ones truly shined through, creating a very realistic, yet heartbreaking portrayal of one band trying to make it in the harsh, harsh biz that is the music industry. A+ filmmaking. A+ documentary.

4. Survivor: Samoa

Season 19 of CBS’s “Survivor” proves to be a hit after the boring dud that was Tocantins. It’s all about the characters! We’ve got Shambo – the mullet-sporting former Marine Sargeant outcast. We had Ben – an ignorant bar manager from California who told a fellow castaway to go eat “ketchup sandwiches.” And then there’s Evil Russell – a oil company owner who doesn’t really care about the money or who he steamrolls over in order to progress his game (Kudos on finding the Hidden Immunity Idol without any clues! Damn, man!)

Gabon was good, not great. Tocantins was a big letdown. That said, Samoa is proving that there’s still some life to this oldie-but-goodie and that CBS should re-up Jeff Probst’s contract (which expires after Season 20’s All Stars 2!)

According to Samoa, the tribe hasn’t quite spoken just yet.

5. The Noisette’s “Wild Young Hearts”

Friends and fellow readers are probably sick of me talking about this one so I’ll make it snappy. The Noisette’s follow up to “What’s the Time Mr. Wolf?” proves that the sophomore slump is a thing of the past. “Wild Young Hearts” is eclectic,  groovy, and light-hearted. Shingai Shoniwa’s voice is at its best, while the rhythms and retro-melodies are fresh and invigorating. Download “Wild Young Hearts,” “Never Forget You,” and “Saturday Night” to see for yourselves.

Now if only the band will leave Europe behind and come play stateside..

6. Halloween!

Best. Holiday. Ever.

Candy, pumpkin carving, heart attack pumpkin seeds, costumes, scares, ghosts and ghouls and the like – Halloween just kicks ass. ‘Tis the one month I actually enjoy living in New England. I’ve got a huge ass pumpkin waiting to be carved, I’ve got Pumpkin Spice Lattes and Pumpkin Ales on the menu, and a plethora of horror flicks to digest.

October is badass.

7.  Zombieland

It’s bloody, it’s fun, and the opening credits play “For Whom the Bell Tolls.” And it has ZOMBIES! Need I say more?

Woody Harrelson was a badass southerner, Jesse Eisenberg played a coy college kid way better than Cera ever could, and Abigail Breslin and Emma Stone played a sneaky pair of sisters who conned their way to survival. The movie was funny, extremely entertaining, and had a mysteriously amazing cameo that I will not spoil! Everything in this movie fucking worked.

Vampires are out; Zombies are in.

8. Facebook

Screw October, Facebook is in it for the long haul. And I must admit: I am Facebook’s bitch.

The countless hours I spend a week snooping around and being generally nosey could probably be better spent, but damn is it addicting. I’ve got all my friends and contacts in one nice, simple, easy-to-read mini-feed that tells me all I need to know to keep up with your life – and sometimes, too much even!

Basically – if I’m not friends with you on Facebook, I question our chances at friendship as the year changes to 2010. To those without Facebook: It was a nice little run we had and I wish you a lifetime of happiness.

9. Parks and Recreation

When “Parks and Recreation” debuted, it seemed highly doubtful that the show would ever blossom into something of merit. The quirkiness wasn’t quite there, and we weren’t in tune with the characters enough to laugh at their small mannerisms. Upon watching the second season premiere, it was blatantly apparent that this show was going to fight to survive. And if you gave up on it last season, it’s beckoning for you to give it a second chance.

What “Parks” is now accomplishing is truly something to applaud. Utilizing its ensemble cast to the fullest, Amy Poehler and Co. aren’t simply emulating Office-like standards anymore – they’re surpassing them. From Nick Offerman’s deadpan superior Ron Swanson, to intern April Ludgate’s monotone and apathetic  hilarity, “Parks” is truly putting its secondary characters to good use, and that’s something that “The Office” has lots sight of in its past few seasons. (They’re totally overusing Jim, Pam, Andy and Dwight….what about some Kevin and Creed love!?)

Add in the fact that Aziz Ansari and Rashida Jones star in it?  I’d love to hear your reasons for not watching.

10. Foxy Shazam

Foxy Shazam is an up-and-coming band that nicely blends shredding guitars, staccato keys, and amazing singalong choruses with the perfect hint of mild insanity.  Singer Eric Sean Nally dominates the stage and doesn’t give a fuck if you haven’t heard a single song – he grabs ahold of ya and never lets go.

And yeah…he’s mildly insane.

These guys are on the road with The Sounds and literally destroyed their opening spot in New York City. Their first album, “The Flamingo Trigger,” provides you with a hardcore and thrashy, while at times, abstract feel. Their second LP, my favorite – “Introducing Foxy Shazam” is a bit more structured. From avant-garde, to pop rock, to hardcore…I imagine the experimental rock of Foxy Shazam will continue well into their third record, 2010’s “Au Contraire”.

Download: “Dangerous Man”, “Introducing Foxy Shazam,” and “Wanna-be Angel”. Catch ‘em on the road with The Sounds through November 7th.

]]> http://allseriestrekvar.wordpress.com/2009/10/19/tom-hanks-no-suelta-a-dan-brown/ Tue, 20 Oct 2009 03:06:15 +0000 TrekVar http://allseriestrekvar.wordpress.com/2009/10/19/tom-hanks-no-suelta-a-dan-brown/

Ya piensa en la película de ‘The Last Simbol’

Tom Hanks no suelta a Dan Brown

Foto: SONY

LOS ANGELES, 17 Oct. (EUROPA PRESS) -

Tras los taquillazos de ‘El Código Da Vinci’ y ‘Ángeles y Demonios’, que le convirtieron en el actor mejor pagado del mundo no es de extrañar que Tom Hanks quiera a volverse a meter en la piel del profesor Robert Langdon en ‘El Símbolo Perdido’, la nueva novela de Dan Brown.

Desde la alfombra roja en la premiere de la cinta de aventuras ‘Donde viven los monstruos’, Hanks aseguró que ya ha leído el último libro de Brown –en las librerías estadounidenses desde el pasado 15 de septiembre y que llegará a España el 29 de octubre– y que, como en las ocasiones anteriores, quedó encantado. “Lo terminé la semana pasada. Dan sabe cómo tejer una buena historia, iba ansioso hasta el final”, afirmó en declaraciones a la MTV.

En este punto, el multioscarizado acto no dudó en asegurar que si deciden llevar a la gran pantalla la nueva aventura de Langdon estaría “encantado” de encarnar otra vez al intrépido erudito en simbología religiosa de Harvard. “Si deciden hacerlo otra vez, espero que me pregunten. ¿Si no me llaman, qué hice mal?”, se pregunta Hanks con una medio sonrisa en la cara.

‘El Símbolo Perdido’ llega seis años después del último libro de Brown y vuelve tras los pasos del profesor de Harvard Robert Langdon. En esta ocasión el protagonista se sumerge en el mundo secreto de los masones y sus rituales a lo largo de 12 horas en un thriller de 600 páginas ambientado en Washington.

Un material que, como sus predecesoras, es ideal para la gran pantalla. “Son películas increíblemente divertidas de hacer y también creo que son muy divertidas para el público”, sentenció Hanks. Los 760 millones que cosechó en taquilla ‘El Código Da Vinci’ y los más de 600 millones que recaudó ‘Ángeles y Demonios’ le cargan de razones.

Pörgős krimi volt, de az azért furcsa, hogy a Harvard Egyetem vallási szimbólumok és ikonológia professzora (Robert Langdon) nem beszél olaszul, de a Vatikánban és Rómában közelébe kerülő összes ember – még az utolsó rendőr is – mind beszélt angolul.

- Posted using MobyPicture.com

Este espaço deixei reservado para fazermos críticas literárias sobre os livros do autor Dan Brown. Sempre achei legal ter o leitor participando e dando sua opinião sobre os mais diversos assuntos. Nos últimos tempos tenho visto com maior frequência jovens lendo, seja dentro de ônibus ou trem, praças ou parques, sempre nos deparamos com alguém com um livro.

Temos aqui no blog o livro para download em PDF.
E-books Dan Brown

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Para continuar lendo a crítica literária da coleção Dan Brown clique no link abaixo

http://www.poemasepensamentos.com.br/2009/10/13/critica-literaria-colecao-dan-brown/

Here are my thoughts about the book while I was still reading it – The Lost Symbol.

Here are my thoughts about the book while I was still reading it – The Lost Symbol.

I’m done with The Lost Symbol at last. It took me 8 days to read it. It’s a bit long for a thriller, but I was not able to spend much time on it on any day. Finally, I had to spend a better part of my Sunday in order to wind it up.

I found the theme of this book even better than those of Dan Brown’s previous works. The fact that the subject isn’t as far fetched as the Jesus’ lost lineage or mysterious meteorite, has made all the difference to me. Even though, this includes all the usual symbols, mysteries, secrets and codes, the ultimate truth unveiled is the simplest one and yet very powerful. I could relate to it and was astonished by the revelation.

I hated Sato very much in the beginning for intimidating Robert. I made a little note too at that point – “I hate Sato.  Whatever her motives are, at the moment she is just a malicious, inconsiderate, selfish brute.”

I had a strong feeling even then that she has her own reasons for behaving so and that she intentioned well. But all the same, my feelings for her didn’t improve much. Despite her efficiency, I couldn’t appreciate her ruthlessness. She is one of the coldest characters I’ve ever came across.

And I was awed by the sensory- deprivation tanks and breathable liquid mentioned in the novel. Never heard of them before. I was curious before I came to that part as to how the author would explain the escape of an important person from death by apparent drowning.

The Cliffs of Moher

I missed two blog entries last week due to an annual golf trip to Ireland.  This year, we went to the West, in County Clare and the Galway area.  After playing a gorgeous round at Lahinch and before an unbelievable plate of stew at Gus O’Connor’s pub in Doolin, we stopped briefly at the breathtaking Cliffs of Moher.  Standing on O’Brien’s tower gives you a 700 foot vantage point on Galway Bay with the Aran Islands barely visible out in the Atlantic.  It’s a spectacular spot and thanks to both our tour guide Tim and Wikipedia, I learned that it served as a backdrop for The Princess Bride, the latest entry in the endless line of Harry Potter movies, and even the hazy cover art for U2’s recent album, No Line on the Horizon.

Sign #1

Along the walk up, the tourist bureau posted a series of warning signs.  It may be true that much like Scotland, Ireland and the United States are two cultures separated by a common language, but really, a few words may have been in order to help clarify the meaning of these imaginative, if over-reaching symbols.

They started simply enough with Sign #1: a triangular-shaped warning that sprinting along the edge may cause both damage to the cliffs and an ungainly posture.  Indeed, this simple visual messaging would easily translate for visitors from most any culture around the world.

Sign #2

Sign #2 however, began the descent into indecipherability.  It could mean ‘please don’t kick the oversized black piano keys’ or perhaps ‘no hurdling gravestones.’  Maybe it means that ‘climbing shipping boxes of framed paintings requires two hands’ or perhaps even something as prosaic as ‘no dancing too close to obstructions of any sort,’ but that seems unlikely given the Irish proclivity for enthusiastic if ungainly dancing.  No, Sign #2 remained something of a mystery to our group, but whatever it warned of, apparently we were able to walk away unscathed and apparently, without egregious violation.

Sign #3

Sign #3 though totally lost it with the implied intent.  ’No hovering at altitudes higher than the local birds’?  ’No walking on flaming coals while littering candy wrappers’?  ’Beware of fire gulls’?  The possibilities for misinterpretation seem limitless and would require someone with expertise in a made up academic discipline like “Symbology”–that’s right, I’m talking to you Robert Langdon and you too Dan Brown–to interpret the meaning of the graphic artist here.

Then again, take another look at the top picture.  See all the non-cushioning layers of shale and sandstone that might provide only a harsh and temporary break in any unfortunate fall over the nearly vertical cliff face that ultimately ends in the frigid crashing sea hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of feet below?  Taking that perspective, it seems Nature already provides all the warning labels one might need to keep all but the most determined visitor from tumbling off.  That’s keeping it simple…

By Dennis Ryan, CCO, Element 79

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