The Unauthorized Guide to the Mysteries Found in
Dan Burstein and Arne de Keijzer
“If anyone can divine the contents of The Lost Symbol,
it’s Dan Burstein” …New York Magazine
There is only one Dan Brown. And there is also only one “Secrets” team that has achieved worldwide bestseller success providing the curious reader with compelling and authoritative explorations into the thought-provoking ideas that lie behind Dan Brown’s action-adventure novels.
SECRETS OF THE LOST SYMBOL (William Morrow/December 22, 2009/$25.99 Hardcover/Also available early as an ebook from HarperMedia on December 1, 2009) is no exception. Once again award-winning journalist and bestselling author Dan Burstein and co-editor Arne de Keijzer have assembled an impressive roster of world-class thinkers to shed light on the rich and important ideas woven into Dan Brown’s latest blockbuster. “The Lost Symbol may be a beach read, but underneath the sand, it is a novel of ideas,” Burstein declares.
Exploring the mysteries, unraveling the real-life revelations, and helping readers separate fact from cleverly invented fiction has been Burstein and de Keijzer’s mission since the publication of their bestselling Secrets of the Code. Snapped up by Da Vinci Code fans, Secrets of the Code quickly became a huge success, appearing on The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestseller lists and several others. It also became an international best seller translated into more than 30 languages.
Liate Stehlik, Senior Vice President & Publisher, William Morrow/Avon/Eos, noted, “Given the intense demand for The Lost Symbol, we decided to release SECRETS OF THE LOST SYMBOL early in its electronic form to satisfy the legions of fans who want to probe deeper into the world of the Freemasons and explore the multifaceted relationship between religion and science that has dominated Brown’s books. Dan Burstein and Arne de Keijzer have created a must-have companion to the blockbuster novel and we are confident the demand for our e-book will be strong. We hope the early ebook will entice fans to get the hardcover edition, which will be in stores by Christmas.”
SECRETS OF THE LOST SYMBOL features the insights of scholars, authors, journalists and leading thinkers from many fields who cover subjects ranging from Freemasons to the Founding Fathers, from the “ancient mysteries” to “noetic science”, and from Enlightenment Europe to the cryptic art and symbols of Washington, D.C. Along the way, readers will delve into centuries-old controversies, decrypt codes inside the novel, decode symbols and metaphors, and discover amazing facts about thought-experiments, the art of the Capitol, the Smithsonian, and much more. Contributors include:
- Rabbi Irwin Kula, whose insightful commentary delves into the ways in which The Lost Symbol connects to the major debates in religion and spirituality today.
- New Testament expert Deirdre Good similarly parses out a potential problem in the “new age” religious vision of The Lost Symbol: It’s the self-absorption of “me” in a world that needs a stronger “we.”
- Commentaries from Lynne McTaggart and Marilyn Mandala Schlitz, the two noetic scientists who are the actual real life models for the Katherine Solomon character in The Lost Symbol. They are each doing intriguing research into the effect of thought on matter, remote healing, the randomness and connectedness of events and people, and the power of intentionality.
- A rare interview with Jim Sanborn, the sculptor of the enigmatic Kryptos art work referred to by Dan Brown in The Lost Symbol. The sculpture sits outside CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia, and has defied all code breaking efforts to decrypt its fourth layer of secret messages.
- An interview with Michael Parkes, the painter of the Three Graces, a real life art work that figures prominently in the villain Mal’akh’s home in The Lost Symbol.
- Several of Freemasonry’s leading intellectuals—Arturo de Hoyos, Mark Tabbert, and Mark Koltko-Rivera—reveal the “real history” of Masonry and also explore what Dan Brown got right and wrong in writing about this society with so many powerful secrets.
- Mitch Horowitz, author of a notable recent book on the occult in American history, explains why our history is a lot stranger than most Americans think.
- Eamon Javers from Politico amusingly roams the halls of Congress looking for contemporary members of Masonic lodges.
- David Plotz, editor of Slate, who grew up in Washington, D.C., offers a witty commentary about why Dan Brown has Washington all wrong in The Lost Symbol.
- Jeff Sharlet, who wrote about the “The Family,” compares the fear in The Lost Symbol that the Masonic membership and bizarre rituals practiced by our nation’s highest ranking political leaders might be exposed with his actual experiences trying to raise warnings about a real life cult at the heart of power in Washington.
- Secrets team investigative reporter David A. Shugarts, who predicted five years ago that Dan Brown’s next book would be about the Freemasons and that Washington D.C. would be at the heart of the novel, takes readers on a “Magical Masonic Mystical” tour of Washington, with stops ranging from the Capitol Rotunda with its magnificent fresco of the Apotheosis of Washington to the National Cathedral with its Darth Vader grotesque on its façade.
Compelling and controversial, SECRETS OF THE LOST SYMBOL provides plenty of food for thought for Dan Brown’s fans as well as his critics. There is no better way to understand The Lost Symbol than to read Secrets of the Lost Symbol.
For more information, visit: www.SecretsOfTheLostSymbol.com and follow the discussion about the book on twitter at: www.twitter.com/symbolsecrets.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS:
Dan Burstein, co-creator of the Secrets series. is an award-winning journalist and the author of 12 prior books on subjects ranging from global economics to advanced technology and popular culture. He is also founder and managing partner of Millennium Technology Ventures, a New York–based venture capital firm that invests in innovative technology companies. Arne de Keijzer is a former China business consultant. He has written or contributed to books ranging from China’s impact on the global economy to today’s new technologies. Created in 2004, Burstein and de Keijzer’s Secrets series includes the New York Times bestselling Secrets of the Code, Secrets of Angels & Demons, Secrets of the Widow’s Son, and Secrets of Mary Magdalene. Altogether, there are now over four million Secrets books in print worldwide.
PRAISE FOR NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLING SECRETS OF THE CODE.
“… Dan Burstein’s Secrets of the Code … is the first to break through, snaring a spot on the best-seller list. … What does Burstein’s book offer that the other tag-along books don’t? For starters, he unravels a hidden message on the dust jacket of the hardcover edition, and, unlike the others, he doesn’t attack the book from a religious standpoint.”
—Wall Street Journal
“After reading 11 debunker books, I consider Dan Burstein’s Secrets of the Code to be the best of the lot. Most of the other books I read were written from either a Catholic or evangelical Christian perspective; this one is a compilation of writings from people all along the Da Vinci Code spectrum … I’d go with Burstein first.”
—Marcia Ford, FaithfulReader.com
“Secrets of the Code is a veritable Da Vinci Code encyclopedia —a lively combination of interviews, commentaries and extracts from Dan Brown’s sources which will give you a taste of the issues which have been thrown into the debate.”
—The Rough Guide to the Da Vinci Code
“Secrets of the Code is a fun and interesting read, and it gives a glimpse of some of the sources Brown used to create his Da Vinci Code phenomenon.”
—National Catholic Reporter
“The single most cost-efficient book you can purchase, with an impressively thorough collection of essays about every aspect of The Da Vinci Code. . . . This is far and away the best of the Code books in terms of value for dollar. … It’s the best of all the books I read.”
—Frederick Zimmerman, Solomon Key and Beyond (blog)
“If The Da Vinci Code interests you, I cannot recommend too highly the Secrets of the Code . . . It is more interesting than the original book.”
—Norbert Spehner, Revue Alibis
“Unlike other works cashing in on the Code’s success … Dan Burstein’s collection of essays seeks to understand the complexities of gnosticism, Christian origins and the battle over the feminine in Christianity. What the author does is present a range of divergent views about these matters – and about the novel. … In bringing such questions and scholarly voices together into the wider public domain, Burstein (and perhaps even Dan Brown) has done us a service.”
—Anthony Egan, Mail & Guardian
“Secrets of the Code is one of the best of a recent boomlet of books … a collection of various scholarly and critical opinions. Burstein’s bottom line? Brown’s book is fun, brainy—and fiction.”
—Reader’s Digest
Secrets of The Lost Symbol 