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Frans Sammut on The Da Vinci Code
A commentary by Malta's leading novelist on Dan Brown's Da Vinci Code.
54 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 4, 2006
2 people want to read
About the author
Frans Sammut
15 books9 followersFrans Sammut (November 19, 1945 – May 4, 2011) was a Maltese novelist and non-fiction writer.
Sammut was born in Zebbug, Malta. He studied at the Zebbug Primary School, St Aloysius' College, St Michael's Teacher Training College, the University of Malta (B.A., S.Th.Dip./Diploma in Sacred Theology, M.Ed.) and Perugia University (Diploma to teach Italian abroad).
Sammut first gained recognition in the late 1960s, when he co-founded the Moviment Qawmien Letterarju (Literary Revival Movement). Later he served as Secretary of the Akkademja tal-Malti (Maltese Language Academy).
He published numerous works, including the best-selling novels Il-Gagga (The Cage), which was the basis of the 1971 film directed by Mario Azzopardi, Samuraj, which won the Rothmans Prize, and Il-Holma Maltija (The Maltese Dream), about which literary critic Norbert Ellul-Vincenti wrote, "there is nothing of its magnitude in Maltese literature."[citation needed] Alfred Sant considered it Sammut's "masterpiece", and British author and poet Marjorie Boulton called it "a colossal work". In 1991, Sammut published Paceville, which won the Government's Literary Medal. He also published collections of short stories: Labirint (Labyrinth), Newbiet (Seasons), and Hrejjef Zminijietna (Tales of Our Times).
His non-fiction works include Ir-Rivoluzzjoni Franciza: il-Grajja u t-Tifsira (The French Revolution: History and Meaning), Bonaparti f'Malta (Bonaparte in Malta), of which a French translation, Bonaparte à Malte, was published in 2008, and On the Da Vinci Code (2006), a bilingual (English and Maltese) commentary on the international bestseller. He also edited Mikiel Anton Vassalli's Lexicon. Vassalli (d. 1829) is considered the Father of the Maltese Language. In 2006, Sammut's translation of Vassalli's Motti, Aforismi e Proverbii Maltesi was published as Ghajdun il-Ghaqal, Kliem il-Gherf u Qwiel Maltin. In 2007, his Il-Gagga was published for the fourth time, and his Il-Holma Maltija in translation (as La Malta Revo) represented Malta in the Esperanto collection of classic literary works published by Mondial Books of New York. In 2009, Sammut presented a revolutionary interpretation of Pietru Caxaru's poem "Xidew il-qada" (also known as "Kantilena"), the oldest written document in the Maltese language.
Sammut ended his career in education as a Head of School, though from 1996 to 1998 he was Cultural Consultant to the Prime Minister of Malta. He was married to Catherine Cachia and they had two sons, Mark and Jean-Pierre.
Sammut was born in Zebbug, Malta. He studied at the Zebbug Primary School, St Aloysius' College, St Michael's Teacher Training College, the University of Malta (B.A., S.Th.Dip./Diploma in Sacred Theology, M.Ed.) and Perugia University (Diploma to teach Italian abroad).
Sammut first gained recognition in the late 1960s, when he co-founded the Moviment Qawmien Letterarju (Literary Revival Movement). Later he served as Secretary of the Akkademja tal-Malti (Maltese Language Academy).
He published numerous works, including the best-selling novels Il-Gagga (The Cage), which was the basis of the 1971 film directed by Mario Azzopardi, Samuraj, which won the Rothmans Prize, and Il-Holma Maltija (The Maltese Dream), about which literary critic Norbert Ellul-Vincenti wrote, "there is nothing of its magnitude in Maltese literature."[citation needed] Alfred Sant considered it Sammut's "masterpiece", and British author and poet Marjorie Boulton called it "a colossal work". In 1991, Sammut published Paceville, which won the Government's Literary Medal. He also published collections of short stories: Labirint (Labyrinth), Newbiet (Seasons), and Hrejjef Zminijietna (Tales of Our Times).
His non-fiction works include Ir-Rivoluzzjoni Franciza: il-Grajja u t-Tifsira (The French Revolution: History and Meaning), Bonaparti f'Malta (Bonaparte in Malta), of which a French translation, Bonaparte à Malte, was published in 2008, and On the Da Vinci Code (2006), a bilingual (English and Maltese) commentary on the international bestseller. He also edited Mikiel Anton Vassalli's Lexicon. Vassalli (d. 1829) is considered the Father of the Maltese Language. In 2006, Sammut's translation of Vassalli's Motti, Aforismi e Proverbii Maltesi was published as Ghajdun il-Ghaqal, Kliem il-Gherf u Qwiel Maltin. In 2007, his Il-Gagga was published for the fourth time, and his Il-Holma Maltija in translation (as La Malta Revo) represented Malta in the Esperanto collection of classic literary works published by Mondial Books of New York. In 2009, Sammut presented a revolutionary interpretation of Pietru Caxaru's poem "Xidew il-qada" (also known as "Kantilena"), the oldest written document in the Maltese language.
Sammut ended his career in education as a Head of School, though from 1996 to 1998 he was Cultural Consultant to the Prime Minister of Malta. He was married to Catherine Cachia and they had two sons, Mark and Jean-Pierre.
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December 8, 2018
A short, blistering attack by a riled Christian who cannot accept that in fiction nothing is sacrosanct, nothing off limits. The general thrust is sensible, but buried beneath prose so purple it will have you clutching at your throat and fanning for fresh air.
Displaying 1 of 1 review