Blog 11

Book: Angels and Demons
Pages read this week: 300
Pages read this semester: 1322
Writing Style: Questions

Robert Langdon, a Harvard Symbologist, goes to CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research) to help in the investigation of the brutal murdr of Leonardo Vetra, one of the top scientists at CERN, who had discovered antimatter, an opposite of matter which is highly explosive as it has a lot of energy. After the arrival of Vittoria Vetra, Leonardo’s daughter, they discover that the antimatter specimen has been stolen. It is the task of some insider, as no one knew about it. Robert and Vittoria fly off to Vatican City where the canister containing antimatter is reported to have been placed by Illuminati. Both of them disembark on a dangerous journey to find it along with the help of Commander Olivetti of Swiss Guards and Camerlengo Carlo Ventresca. They receive a phone call from the ‘Hassassin’ who claims responsibility of kidnapping four preferiti, the preferred ones for the position of pope. Langdon tries to retrace the so called “Path of Illumination,” hoping to find out the whereabouts of the preferiti. The first cardinal is found dead and they start figuring out the next place.

Que. 1: What does the story makes you wonder about and why?
Ans.: First of all, the story makes me wonder about why Dan Brown chooses similar topics for his storyline. Like ‘The Da Vinci Code,’ ‘Angels and Demons’ also involves secret brotherhoods, Catholic Church, murders and above all, an ancient secret. Sometimes, I think how much of the author’s claims are true. I do turn skeptic, even though it is very hard for me to stop reading the book. Where does Dan Brown get so much information from? Is he really a genius? How are his books received by religious organizations? There was huge uproar about ‘The Da Vinci Code,’ but I found nothing about ‘Angels and Demons’ online. I know the Catholic Church committed a lot of crimes against its opponents, but I never knew about the profoundness of them. Until now, I used to think that I have read a lot about religion, but I guess that Christianity and Paganism still require more exploration from me.

Que. 2: What does the author not do well as a writer?
Ans.: Even though ‘Angels and Demons’ is a smartly written book with a very fast paced story, there are some loopholes in the story. First one is that how can be some American (Robert Langdon) leave his country without permission and go to two other countries without any visa? Surely, he or his hosts had some high profile international contacts. However, it seems illogical since everything in the story was supposed to be clandestine. Dan Brown never explained how CERN’s security was breached when Leonardo Vetra’s was murdered in his own bedroom. How can Langdon reach Boston Airport in a car and board the plane witout any check in? And above all, why would CERN contact a Harvard Symbologist to investigate the murder of their top scientist, not Interpol or Police? Dan Brown’s plot is built on over hypothetical assumptions. Still, it was a good book.