The Voynich Manuscript Review

The Voynich Manuscript by Gerry Kennedy and Rob Churchill

In 1912 Wilfrid Voynich found a manuscript in an Italian monastery.  It was in an unknown language, and had drawings of unknown plants.  No one knew who had written it or what it could mean.  Ever since people from all walks of life have tried to figure out the mystery that is The Voynich Manuscript.

I don't know what I thought this book would be.  I had come across a reference to the manuscript (I can't remember where) and was curious. I knew nothing about it when I read this book.  You don't have to.  All you need is a love of the mysterious.  It is an interesting subject and an interesting book.  It follows the manuscript from the day it was found through all the various people who have owned it, or studied it.  It gives you all the theories about who wrote it and where it came from.  It gives you all the different ways people have tried to decode or translate the text.   And on this journey it ends up covering a lot of ground.  It talks about cryptography and the ways codes are made and broken.  It gives you a brief history of Roger Bacon and John Dee and others.  It talked about the Cathars and the Shakers.  It went into the effects migraines can have on people.  And mentions a lot of other people and topics that have been brought into the Voynich conversation over the years.  I liked exploring the wide variety of subjects that all formed pieces in the puzzle.   There is a lot of information here but it is not overwhelming and it never bogs down in tedium.  It is all presented in a way that is easy to follow and enjoyable to read.  It does intrigue the reader.  You end up wanting to know what it is all about.  You can understand why people have spent years of their lives working on this.  Spoiler Alert:  There is no translation at the end of this book.  There are no definitive answers.  But I enjoyed exploring the mystery.