A brief observation on The Da Vinci Code

Kathryn Jean Lopez has this to say in the National Review Corner:

At this very moment there is at least one person--likely more--in every transportation hub in the United States--and most of Europe--reading The Da Vinci Code.

Wherever I go, I see TDVC--this is true today, six months ago, a year ago.

And who knows? Maybe it will be true a year from now. Ten years from now. Actually, it isn't too difficult to imagine a dystopia in which civilization is built around Dan Brown thrillers. Maybe we're there already.

Anyway, a brief observation about the DVC. I haven't read it, don't plan to read it, and have no interest in watching Tom Hanks prowling around in a mullet either. But I have talked to a number of people that were greatly taken with the book, and my impression is that most of them know it's a big pile of crap. They may not admit it in conversation, and they might not even admit it to themselves, but they know it. A huge, steaming pile of crap.