Product Description

You've read "The Rule of Four", now read about its source..."The Rule of Four" by Ian Caldwell and Dustin Thomason is a runaway international bestseller, topping the charts on both sides of the Atlantic. But the foundation of "The Rule of Four", as all its readers know, is a little-known text from the fifteenth century, the "Hypnerotomachia Poliphili". Lurid, dreamlike, extremely erotic and written in many different languages and codes, the exact meaning of the Hypnerotomachia has eluded scholars for centuries. Now, in this indispensable, concise and thoroughly entertaining book, Professor Joscelyn Godwin, the translator of the first complete English edition of the Hypnerotomachia, guides the reader through its labyrinthine pages and unlocks the secrets and mysteries within Ian Caldwell and Dustin Thomason's novel. He brings to life the worlds of both the Renaissance reader and the young Princeton undergraduate, setting both in the context of their time and place. Erudite and engaging, "The Real Rule of Four" is the perfect companion piece to "The Rule of Four". ""The Da Vinci Code" for people with brains" - "Independent".

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #116963 in Books
• Published on: 2005-04-28
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 192 pages

Guardian
This year's Publishing Sensation

Independent.
The Da Vinci Code for people with brains

From the Publisher
THE UNAUTHORISED GUIDE TO THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER

Customer Reviews

The Facts behind the Fiction
Joscelyn Godwin is highly qualified to write this very able and detailed book, essentially about another book: "Hypnerotomachia Poliphili" but also putting into context the "Rule of Four" work of fiction, which was overshadowed by the Da Vinci Code phenomena. Godwin is the translator of the Hypnerotomachia into English thus knows the book inside-out, so the extensive amount of work he must put into both its translation and the composition of this book has paid off in a very authoritative way.
After describing the whole story of the Hypnerotomachia and its symbolism, he then puts it all into context to show the events around its mysterious subject matter and the debate in the last five hundred years as to who was the true author. He then puts the story and characters of the book, "Rule of Four", into the modern context in and around Princeton University.
This book is a great read for anyone interested in the "Hypnerotomachia" and its mystique and is essential for those who want to go deeper behind the "Rule of Four"