Post by ellery on Feb 20, 2008 16:53:59 GMT -5
The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco
What I loved about this book is the historical accuracy. It is a far cry from the 'historically creative' Da Vinci Code. Also, Eco is a symbologist, which makes him perfect to write a novel taking place in a medieval monastery. There's a movie with Sean Connery in it too, but don't waste your time. There's just no way to translate a novel with such depth to the screen.
If you're like me, then you'll also enjoy The Key to the Name of the Rose. This book interprets the short Latin passages, which is honestly not a big deal. What I really liked was the short biographies of the 'real' characters that are either referenced or actually appear in the novel.
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Book description from The Merriam-Webster Encyclopedia of Literature at amazon.com:
Novel by Umberto Eco, published in Italian as Il nome della rosa in 1980. Although the work stands on its own as a murder mystery, it is more accurately seen as a questioning of "truth" from theological, philosophical, scholarly, and historical perspectives. The story centers on William of Baskerville, a 50-year-old monk who is sent to investigate a death at a Benedictine monastery. During his search, several other monks are killed in a bizarre pattern that reflects the Book of Revelation. Highly rational, Baskerville meets his nemesis in Jorge of Burgos, a doctrinaire blind monk determined to destroy heresy at any cost.
What I loved about this book is the historical accuracy. It is a far cry from the 'historically creative' Da Vinci Code. Also, Eco is a symbologist, which makes him perfect to write a novel taking place in a medieval monastery. There's a movie with Sean Connery in it too, but don't waste your time. There's just no way to translate a novel with such depth to the screen.
If you're like me, then you'll also enjoy The Key to the Name of the Rose. This book interprets the short Latin passages, which is honestly not a big deal. What I really liked was the short biographies of the 'real' characters that are either referenced or actually appear in the novel.
**********************
Book description from The Merriam-Webster Encyclopedia of Literature at amazon.com:
Novel by Umberto Eco, published in Italian as Il nome della rosa in 1980. Although the work stands on its own as a murder mystery, it is more accurately seen as a questioning of "truth" from theological, philosophical, scholarly, and historical perspectives. The story centers on William of Baskerville, a 50-year-old monk who is sent to investigate a death at a Benedictine monastery. During his search, several other monks are killed in a bizarre pattern that reflects the Book of Revelation. Highly rational, Baskerville meets his nemesis in Jorge of Burgos, a doctrinaire blind monk determined to destroy heresy at any cost.
