Review: The Masonic Myth by Jay Kinney

Publisher: HarperOne

Released: September 8, 2009

ISBN: 978-0060822569

Teaser quote:

"This brings us to the heart of the Masonic puzzle: why all the secrecy? With organized crime or intelligence agencies or terrorist cells, secrecy is essential to allow clandestine activities to proceed without exposure. Is it entirely a surprise, then, if similar motives are attributed to Masonry?" (pg 109)

My rating: 3/5

My thoughts:

My curiosity into secret societies began years ago, when I read Dan Brown's DaVinci Code. When it comes to books that mix facts with fiction, I'm a sucker for wondering just what parts are fact & what is fiction.

The Masonic Myth was released to coincide with Brown's highly anticipated follow up The Lost Symbol. It provides a history of the organization and tries to set the record straight about what they represent. The records have June 24, 1717 as the official beginning so many of the traditions & rituals date back hundreds of years. In a sense, taken out of context, we may interpret these incorrectly.

The author, Jay Kinney, is a Freemason member so I had to keep that in the back of my mind while reading. If there were big secrets, I would have to assume he would conveniently leave them out (though maybe that's just the tiny bit of conspiracy theorist in me). For someone such as myself with just a general interest in Freemasonry, this book will not be too exciting as it reads more like a textbook. You can tell Jay Kinney researched this tremendously and although it may not be an exciting read, it was an informative one.