The Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt (Landmark Books) [Paperback]

Elizabeth Payne (Author)

Book Description

Release date: February 12, 1981 | Age Range: 8 and up | Series: Landmark Books | Lexile Measure: 1100L (What's this?)

For more than 3,000 years, Egypt was a great civilization that thrived along the banks of the Nile River. But when its cities crumbled to dust, Egypt’s culture and the secrets of its hieroglyphic writings were
also lost. The Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt explains how archaeologists have pieced together their discoveries to slowly reveal the history of Egypt’s people, its pharaohs, and its golden days.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

For more than 3,000 years, Egypt was a great civilization that thrived along the banks of the Nile River. But when its cities crumbled to dust, Egypt?s culture and the secrets of its hieroglyphic writings were
also lost. The Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt explains how archaeologists have pieced together their discoveries to slowly reveal the history of Egypt?s people, its pharaohs, and its golden days.

Product Details

• Age Range: 8 and up
  
• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers; Reissue edition (February 12, 1981)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0394846990
• ISBN-13: 978-0394846996
• Product Dimensions: 5.3 x 0.5 x 7.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #20,366 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #2 in Books > Children's Books > History > Africa
  • #8 in Books > Children's Books > History > Ancient
  • #23 in Books > Children's Books > Science, Nature & How It Works > Social Science

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

57 of 58 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating reading even for adults! October 17, 1999

By A Customer

Format:Paperback

As a home-schooling father, I bought this book to supplement our study of ancient history for my son (grade 7) and daughter (grade 5). My son who likes history is enjoying it; and although my daughter finds the reading a little difficult at times, she likes it OK, too. I found it very well written and informative. Starting out with the discovery of the Rosetta Stone, the author takes the reader on a journey of Egypt's remote past to the lives of the great Pharoahs. The history of ancient Egypt from the Nile valley to the military campaigns in the Middle East of Thutmose III and Rameses II are covered in good story-telling fashion. Included throughout are desciptions of the ancient Egyptians' religious beliefs and culture. Black-and-white illustrations support the text. Although it is suggested for 9-12 year olds, I would recommend it for older readers as well.

67 of 72 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars An Effective Introduction to Ancient Egypt for Children August 30, 2001

By Charles Flemming

Format:Paperback

Written for children who are independent readers, Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt was, nevertheless, a fascinating introduction to Ancient Egypt for all my children. My younger daughter was in first grade at the time and needed some help with the reading, but the stories themselves were of great interest to her. It was fun for me to see all three of them learn about the Rosetta Stone and other archaeological discoveries, most of which I hadn't learned about until I was well past childhood. It's amazing what children will find interesting when it comes wrapped in a story. Although some may regard the story-telling as somewhat fanciful (obviously we don't really know what most of these people really thought or felt), the author has succeeded in her quest to bring the attention of the reader into the context of the history she describes.

We bought this book along with the The Greenleaf Guide to Ancient Egypt (Greenleaf Guides), which listed it as one of its primary texts for children's history. I recommend that book, along Tony Allan's Time Traveller Book of Pharaohs and Pyramids, if you are going to teach your children the history of ancient Egypt. The Greenleaf book helps you organize your children's study with questions and projects (along with recommended resources), while the well-illustrated Time Traveller book helps the children visualize what they're reading about.

30 of 35 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent introduction to Egypt! August 5, 2000

By Yumuri

Format:Paperback

This is a wonderful general introduction tot he study of ancient Egypt. Caution: This is really meant for grades 7 and up. The langauge is difficult for younger ones,even as a read-aloud. Also, the first chapter is mostly conjecture about the beginning of civilization in the Nile River Valley. You can skip it. Overall, it is fascinating reading.

24 of 29 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Facinating and excellent--it makes history come alive! November 4, 1999

By A Customer

Format:Paperback

We bought this book for our year of study of Egypt in Home School. Since we are following a classical approach, my oldest son is only in2nd grade. though recommended for this age by various home educators, I"ve found that I've had to summarize some of it for him. or he got bogged down. Still, we love it!

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Not Just Pharaohs--but all of Egypt! July 10, 2006

By Khyraen

Format:Paperback

This book is another Landmark Books success!

Your children and you will learn, not just about Pharaohs, but about Egyptian history as well. The author utilizes stories well in order to draw the reader in and retain his interest. This is no mere book of facts that you will have to drag your children through; I found myself engaged and learning while reading it.

Of course, this is not the FULL history of Egypt, but all the main Pharaoh's and the events surrounding them are covered in detail. I take issue with a few of the assumptions the author presents that have been made by modern Egyptologists, but the error is in our current thinking on Egypt, not the author's work.

(For example, do you really believe that illiterate peasants worked from sunup to sundown and were pleased to do so for Pharaoh--to a man? Or, that modern scholars who have been able to find little evidence from the time period of Cheops know more about the opinion of the ancient Egyptians towards their Pharaoh than the Egyptians themselves did in 50BC?)

Some Pharaohs covered include Cheops, Hatshepsut, Thutmose III, Akhnaton, and Rameses II. Also covered are the times of chaos in between the kingdoms, minor pharaohs and some queens, and times when Egypt was conquered and how this changed their kingdom. Even daily life of ancient Egypt is described within the text, making this an good stand-alone study on Egypt.

Summary: This is an excellent middle-school resource for a study on ancient Egypt that will provide information about most of the main events in a chronological manner. Highly recommended!

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Pharaohs! August 22, 2005

By Myra Schjelderup VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

The mythology of Egypt can be fun, but the history is what really draws your attention. A clear part of Egyptian history is her pharaohs, and this book follows the line of ancient pharaohs with adequately-sized sections for each.

If you are looking for specific details this might not be very helpful, but it is very good for reading about the bigger stories.

This is a great book to help start young readers on their road to learning about Ancient Egypt.

A 'must have' for any Egypt-history-lover!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Lizard Boy January 15, 2012

By S. Ortell

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

The book has an error on the Rosetta stone stating that it is made out of Basalt _ the Rosetta stone is Aswan granite. It was easy reading- fairly simple content