HIPPOPOTAMUS MARSH-C (Lords of the Two Lands) [Hardcover]

Pauline Gedge (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2000 | Series: Lords of the Two Lands (Book 1)

An epic of the struggle to liberate Egypt from the rule of the "Shepherd Kings".

The Hyksos-outlanders from Asia Minor with Cretan and Minoan trading connections-ruled Egypt for over two hundred years, from about 1830 b.c. Then the descendants of the last true king of Egypt rallied the native princes of Upper Egypt to rebel against the foreigners and their alien gods and ways.

Sequenra Tao, prince of Weset, led the revolt. His provincial, aristocratic family-dauntless mother, dutiful wife, three handsome sons, and two beloved daughters-are accustomed to a life of straitened gentility on their estate, remote from the center of power and commerce in the Delta and from the contamination of the Hyksos. But when the prince decides to throw off the shackles of subservience, their lives change as they each must risk all, even life itself, to restore Egyptians and their gods to glory. The Hippopotamus Marsh begins a trilogy that brings to vivid life the passions and intrigues that ushered in the great Eighteenth Dynasty.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

YA-This first volume in a projected trilogy chronicles the rise of the Eighteenth Dynasty in ancient Egypt. As the story begins, the "Two Lands"-upper and lower Egypt-have been under the rule of the Hyksos, canny invaders from Asia Minor, for 200 years. The Tao family, hereditary kings and queens of Egypt, have long been exiled to a distant part of the kingdom. Subjected to increasing humiliations at the hands of the usurpers, they are finally pushed beyond endurance and begin to rebel through intrigue and open warfare. However, after several generations of Hyksos rule, it is often difficult to discern where true loyalty and wisdom lie. Tragedy results when a key character, acting from good intentions, unwittingly betrays the cause; yet, after a crushing defeat, the Taos and other loyal Egyptian royalists are rising again at the book's end. This novel's unhurried pace may strike some teens as slow, but for those who enjoy a satisfying generational saga, or who like to lose themselves in another world, it succeeds remarkably well in bringing a distant and alien time and place to life. Ancient Egypt's gods, customs, geography, and history become surprisingly accessible as readers come to know the arrogant, loving, devout, and contradictory Tao family members and the world that shaped them.
Christine C. Menefee, Fairfax County Public Library, VA
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

"Gedge has the talent to resurrect [ancient Egypt] and give it life in all its barbaric brilliance." -- San Francisco Examiner

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 3 pages
• Publisher: Soho Press (April 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1569471916
• ISBN-13: 978-1569471913
• Product Dimensions: 22.6 x 13.8 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,086,133 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Gedge does it again, April 16, 2001

By 

S. Smith "a98hoya" (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: HIPPOPOTAMUS MARSH-C (Lords of the Two Lands) (Hardcover)

Pauline Gedge has been granted a gift. She has the ability to bring civilizations, long dead, to life through her words. Imagine that you are the ruler of a specific region of a country and that you receive a letter from your king, who lives several hundred miles away, which states that the noise made by the Hippopotami who inhabit your marsh are keeping him awake at night. What a ridiculous notion! Yet Seqenenra Tao must deal with a king who is just this irrational. Add to this mixture the fact that the king is a foriegner, a Setui or Hyksos as we know them today, and that in Seqenenra Tao flows the blood of the rightful pharoahic line of Egypt and The Hippopotamus Marsh, Gedge's masterful tale of revolt in Ancient Egypt, is begins. Truly, I couldn't put this book down until I finished it and I am finding the same thing to be true of the Oasis, which I am reading now. These characters are so well developed that the reader invests much in their lives.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Hippopotamus Marsh, July 5, 2000

By 

Standing In Motion - See all my reviews

This review is from: HIPPOPOTAMUS MARSH-C (Lords of the Two Lands) (Hardcover)

Once again, Ms. Gedge uses her papyrus time-machine to transport us back to a vivid and living ancient Egypt. We find ourselves walking among the sands of time as it slowly drifts between the late Seventeenth and early Eighteenth Dynasties. Egypt at this time has been occupied for nearly two hundred years by the Hyksos, foreign Asiatics who rule from the Delta city of Avaris. Apophis, the Hyksos king, delights in imposing ridiculous demands on the semi-autonomous Egyptian princes of the South. The straw that breaks the camels back, is an edict to kill every hippopotamus in the Nile marshes around the city of Thebes. This terrible task the Theban prince cannot bear, nor will he do. The prince is Sequenenre Tao II. This book is the first in a trilogy about the expulsion of the Hyksos from Egypt by the House of Tao. It is a compelling and imaginative saga, with brilliant twists and turns of historical fiction. Ms. Gedge lays a feast of alternative history on the palate that is sumptious and exotic. Enjoy! Book two of this trilogy "The Oasis", is scheduled for release in October of 2000.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Anna, March 13, 2000

By 

Poison Ivy "poisonivy1" (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: HIPPOPOTAMUS MARSH-C (Lords of the Two Lands) (Hardcover)

I liked the first two books of the new series Hippopotamus Marsh and Oasis)- they are well researched and touch upon the least known period of the Egyptian history. This series may seem a little dry (no romance whatsoever) than Ms. Gedge's other books (Child of the Morning, Lady of the Reeds). But for those who are more into history and less into romance, this would be a treat! Can't wait for the conclusion