Book Matters: The Lost Symbol

Unable to resist the urge, I bought and consumed Dan Brown's latest Robert Langdon thriller, The Lost Symbol. The story takes place in the landmarks and on the streets of my city, Washington, DC and delivers all of the twists and turns we've come to expect from the adventures of everyone's favorite tweeded Harvard symbolist. It's an entertaining read and like The DaVinci Code, it sparked my intellectual curiosity. I have a large unread library in my house and The Lost Symbol compelled me to crack open my copies of Euclid's Elements and William James Varieties of Religious Experience for the first time. And to think, these treasures (and many others) are sitting in plain sight just waiting to be discovered.

I can say with great confidence that Dan Brown is not American's most gifted fiction writer, but he may be one of her most important. He challenges readers to stop accepting the world they live in and start understanding the world they live in. Poverbs 4:7-9 KJV states (forgive me, 11 years of Christian school):

7 Wisdom is the principal thing;therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.

8 Exalt her, and she shall promote thee: she shall bring thee to honor, when thou dost embrace her.

9 She shall give to thine head an ornament of grace:a crown of glory shall she deliver to thee.

You will not get wisdom by reading The Lost Symbol but it has an uncanny way of reminding you that you should seek it always.