Religion and Ritual in Ancient Egypt

Religion and Ritual in Ancient Egypt by Emily Teeter, 200 pages

For three thousand years, Egyptian civilization thrived along the banks of the Nile, producing monumental temples that continue to stir the imagination.  But what really happened in those temples, and how did the Egyptians themselves relate to their gods?  These are the questions Dr Teeter attempts to answer, as she strives to translate the religious practices of the ancient Egyptians into terms that are easily comprehensible - and even sympathetic - to a modern reader.  

Unfortunately, this aim is complicated by the introductory nature of the book, leading her to sometimes make sweeping claims on seemingly little or even contradictory evidence.  For example, she stresses the ubiquity of the gods in ancient Egypt at the start of a chapter in which the evidence repeatedly demonstrates the extreme importance the Egyptians placed upon their temples as sites of divine presence, and goes on to contrast this with "societies in which communion with the deity was restricted to temples or churches," without stating which societies she has in mind.  This calls into doubt other conclusions, as when she implausibly suggests that the Egyptian afterlife was egalitarian, or when she elides the role of the pharoah outside of the Amarna period.  The drive to simplify and generalize results in a book that seems to tell us more about Teeter's attitude towards religion than the ancient Egyptians.

Reawakened

Reawakened by Colleen Houck, 393 pages

When seventeen-year-old Lilliana Young enters the Metropolitan Museum of Art one morning during spring break, the last thing she expects to find is a live Egyptian prince with godlike powers, who has been reawakened after a thousand years of mummification. And she really can't imagine being chosen to aid him in an epic quest that will lead them across the globe. But fate has taken hold of Lily, and she, along with her sun prince, Amon, must travel to the Valley of the Kings, raise his brothers, and stop an evil, shape-shifting god named Seth from taking over the world. I’ve enjoyed other books by the author more than this but this book wasn’t bad.  I’m interested enough to want to read the other books.  Her books combine fantasy and historical elements.  The biggest problem for me is that I thought the characters were a little flat.  There are teens that will really enjoy these, especially if they have any interest in ancient Egypt.

Temples of Ancient Egypt

The Complete Temples of Ancient Egypt by Richard H Wilkinson, 245 pages

For over three thousand years the Egyptian civilization flourished along the banks of the Nile, and during those long millennia that civilization was centered on the hundreds of temples constructed to provide homes for the gods.  From the ancient Greeks to today, those monumental temples have awed visitors with their size, splendor, and antiquity.  

More than a catalogue of temple sites, Richard Wilkinson's impressively illustrated book also includes fascinating chapters on the development of temple architecture and the function of the buildings, considerably enriching the reader's understanding of Egyptian religion beyond the merely mythological.  Although dense at times, detailed maps, an extensive chronology, and multiple charts help to make the information more digestible.

Counted with the Stars

Counted with the Stars (Book 1: Out of Egypt series) by Connilyn Cossette      352 pages

The sub-genre of Biblical fiction is, surprisingly, new to me. I have never encountered it prior to reading Connilyn Cossette’s Counted with the Stars. I enjoy Christian fiction and cannot get enough historical fiction so I eagerly delved into this novel.

This is the story of the Exodus of the Hebrews from Egypt. I didn’t understand the terminology of the timeframes (i.e.: 1^st Day of Akhet, Season of inundation), but that didn’t interfere with the story at all. The timeline for the novel is basically 1447-8 BC. That was enough for me to place the story.

A thirteen-year-old Egyptian girl, Kiya, is sold into slavery to settle the debts her father incurred from his failed business. She is sold to his friend, Shefu, as a handmaiden for his wife, Tekurah. Tekurah lives to humiliate her slaves, and the fact that Kiya is a favorite of her husband’s infuriates her. She treats Kiya worse, if that is possible, than the Hebrew slaves.

Kiya befriends another slave, Shira, and the girls become best friends. Together they endure their indentured life. As Kiya does her best to satisfy her mistress, the ten plagues are visited upon Egypt. Author Cossette does an amazing job in making reader’s skin crawl with the lizards, lice, frogs, grasshoppers, etc. that invade the desert country. They came a little too close together in my mind. It was like one day for each of the plagues.

As the Hebrews are forced to flee Egypt to escape the deaths of first-born sons, Kiya decides to follow them. As the review from Publisher’s Weekly stated, “Readers will smell the fear on Passover night, feel the wonder of the Red Sea crossing, and sympathize with the starving and thirsting of those escaping in the wilderness.”

Attention of detail and well-developed characters make this a stand-out novel. As I read in “A Note From the Author,” I learned that names in Ancient Egyptian culture are extremely important. I wish Cossette had given us more information about that, but since I didn’t know that while I was reading, that is really an afterthought.

One of thhe things that I liked was the blue Cloud that seemed to follow  Moses. It was like a biblical version of the Northen Lights.

There is one area where the names were an issue, especially in the beginning. Many of the characters names began with “s,” which was confusing. Sometimes I had to flip back to remember who was who, especially in regards to the secondary characters. It is for this reason, I give Counted with the Stars (Book 1: Out of Egypt series) 4 out 5 stars.

If You Were Me and Lived in Egypt: A Child's Introduction to Culture Around the World

If You Were Me and Lived in…Egypt: A Child’s Introduction to Culture Around the World by Carole P. Roman, illustrated by Kelsa Wierenga  36 pages

It’s easy to be an armchair traveler in Carole Roman’s informative series, If You Were Me and Lived in….A Child’s Introduction to Culture Around the Worlds. This17^th volume focuses on Egypt, the “cradle of civilization.”

One thing that I learned that I did not know was that Egypt is “transcontinental country,” which means that it is “located in both Africa and Asia.”  There’s one for the next trivia game!

I found the text interesting and made me want to learn more about Egypt. I often of it as an exotic locale, but after reading about life there, I realize that its inhabitants and not much different American in the things we enjoy doing and the importance of family.

I give If You Were Me and Lived in...Egypt: A Child's Introduction to Cultures Around the World 4 out of 5 stars. Why 4? The author asks the reader two questions that are not answered. Highly irritating.

1177 BC

1177 BC: The Year Civilization Collapsed by Eric H Cline, 178 pages

During the waning of the Bronze Age, the eastern Mediterranean and Near East was the site of a cosmopolitan network of cultures and societies, intermarrying, trading, and occasionally warring with one another.  It was a time when the seeds of future cultures were planted - the age of the Trojan War and the Hebrew Exodus.  It all came to a catastrophic end in the twelfth century, when a wave of invaders known to historians as the Sea Peoples washed over the lands of Greece, Anatolia, and the Levant before breaking against Egypt.  That is, at least, the conventional account, but as Eric Cline points out in 1177 BC, it is also at best a massive oversimplification, ignoring contributing causes such as a series of particularly strong earthquakes, years of drought, and the disruption of trade in an increasingly complex, and therefore correspondingly increasingly fragile, international network.

Cline's persistent attempts to draw direct parallels between the Late Bronze Age and late modernity occasionally give rise to silliness - the Bronze Age world was in no way "global", and "while we might call" the ancient empires "nation-states in modern parlance", it would be an absurd anachronism.  This is aggravated by Cline's conclusion that we do not yet understand the causes of the 12th century collapse, which leaves any utilitarian relevance to our own times pointless.  The story of the Late Bronze Age and the modern efforts to uncover its history is fascinating on its own terms.

The Alchemist

The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho          208 Pages

This short novel was recommended to me by a friend. I’d had it on my shelf for many years, but had never gotten around to reading it.  But based on my friend’s endorsement, I grabbed it and started reading. It was nothing like I expected. I imagined a traditional novel, not a fable.

The Alchemist is the story of Santiago, a young Andalusian shepherd boy. He travels from his home in Spain to Morocco and across the Egyptian desert in search of a treasure buried at the Pyramids. Along the way he meets many spiritual advisors who are represented in such forms as a camel driver and a well-read Englishman. It’s in one of the Englishman’s books that Santiago learns the definition of an alchemist---one who believes that if metal is heated for many years, it frees itself of all individual properties.

Along his journey, Santiago does meet an alchemist who helps him find the true meaning of finding the treasure. It’s a story of becoming self-empowered and believing in your dreams.

I found this book very similar to Joan Brady’s God on a Harley. I didn’t relate to it as much, but it was still a wonderful read.  I give it four out of five stars.

Cleopatra Confesses

Cleopatra Confesses by Carolyn Meyer, 289 pages

This fictionalized account of Cleopatra’s life follows her from the time she is ten up through her death at age 39.  As a child, Cleopatra was favored by her father over her two older sisters, both of whom were terribly jealous of Cleopatra.  Although neither was truly suited to rule Egypt, both wanted to be queen.  Cleopatra, who often snuck off to mingle with the common people felt like she understood the Egyptian people and, even at age 10, thought she would be a better ruler than any of her sisters.  Of course, Cleopatra does come to rule eventually, marrying first one, than the other of her brothers, but taking two Romans as lovers, Julius Caesar and Marcus Antony, having children with both of them.  The history of the book is as accurate as the author could make it with the limited resource material available, however, this story is told from Cleopatra’s point of view, so of course much of the story is fictionalized.  This is a good book for teens who like historical fiction.

Visitors

Visitors by Sally Beauman
 529 Pages

This is the telling of Howard Carter's search for the lost tomb of King Tut from the viewpoint of those on the outskirts of the society of Egyptian socialites, specifically one 11 year girl recuperating in Egypt following a near death experience with typhus.

As Lucy recounts her life, Sally Beauman recreates an era and place that no longer exists, with the world mad for Egypt and mummies.  A solid historical novel.