THE DA VINCI CODE

The bestselling page-turner, adapted for young readers.

Harvard religious symbology professor Robert Langdon is in Paris for a speaking engagement when he is summoned to the Louvre after-hours. The museum’s curator has been brutally murdered, and mysterious circumstances make Langdon a suspect in the eyes of the police and a clue in the eyes of the curator’s estranged granddaughter, cryptologist Sophie Neveu. Sophie and Robert escape the French police and follow clues left behind that lead through history and secret societies and to a stunning secret that threatens to destroy the Catholic Church and change the world forever. The thriller that was ubiquitous in the early 2000s has been out of the spotlight just long enough to feel fresh to this adaptation’s intended audience, but there isn’t much difference between this book and the original. The sexy bits have been cut out, which is odd. It would seem the publisher feels that America’s young people can’t handle an orgy, but it can handle a destabilization of belief systems that have governed human relations for a couple thousand years. At least there’s no attempt to “young up” Robert and Sophie and cast them as teenage prodigies. Regardless, Brown’s tale remains engrossing, prompting quick turns of the page and readings in one sitting. The exposition can be clunky at times, and the tertiary characters are expendable, but the big reveal is a blast, a pulpy solution that perfectly dovetails with the Indiana Jones–meets–Sherlock Holmes vibe the novel is constantly striving for. Bring on Angels and Demons.

A satisfying adaptation for teens who want their thrills clean.