SRIJITA GHATAK

Dan Brown has continued to successfully marry science to art, albeit with the same tropes and trappings that occur in the book’s predecessors. With Inferno, we get the same race across Europe explored in Angels & Demons and The Da Vinci Code, with the ambiguity of the antagonist’s motives that fueled The Lost Symbol . All throughout this adventure, the now-standard “female who is an expert in her field” accompanies Langdon as he tries to unravel the mystery and save the world. Langdon continues to be part Indiana Jones and part James Bond, that’s for sure. Utilizing the standard “temporary amnesia” plot device, Brown refines his style while also increasing the stakes. While previous books in the series had potential impacts on the local and national levels, Inferno takes the antagonist’s plan to a global scale. With the main character as talented with memory as Robert Langdon is, taking away his recent memories was a good way to have him re-learn the situation at the same time the audience does. This also allows for some entertaining twists and turns as characters’ motives are revealed, often taking the plot in a quick 180° turn.

"The Alchemist" is written by Paulo Coelho. The short 163-paged book is a singularly inspirational masterpiece. The style reads simply yet contains powerful emotions, interesting characters, plot twists, and inspiring wisdom. It’s about a Spanish shepherd boy named Santiago following his dream or personal legend as it is described in the book. The shepherd starts the journey with a dream about finding treasure in the Pyramids of Egypt all the way from his homeland Spain. He is both a simple sheepherder and an ambitious explorer. He follows his dream, which he dreams quite often. He embarks on his journey to cross the Mediterranean and the Sahara to find his treasure and accomplish his Personal Legend.