Truth and Fiction in The Da Vinci Code

A staggeringly popular work of fiction, Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code has sold in its millions. But this fast-paced mystery is unusual in that the author states up front that the historical information in the book is all factually accurate. But is this claim true?

As historian Bart D Ehrman shows in this informative and witty book, The Da Vinci Code is filled with numerous historical mistakes. Did the ancient church engage in a cover-up to make the man Jesus into a divine figure? Did Emperor...