Customer Reviews

Pharaohs and Pyramids (Usborne Time Traveler)

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I would recommend also looking at the compiliation called "Time Traveler" which includes all the four books: Pharoahs and Pyramids, Rome and Romans, Viking Raiders and Knights and Castles.

Overall the Usborne books contain fairly detailed drawings and provide overhead views and maps. For instance a typical Viking eating hall, will have captions that points out who the people are, what food is cooked and how.

The narrative line of the Time Traveler is burdensome. A character goes back in time!! Whoo-hoo. But you can ignore it easy enough. In the Pharoh book I lost track of who was related to who and what they did in that family. I just skip a lot of these more nuanced particulars as I am reading the book to a 4 year old. That said I and my son have enjoyed them and learned.

Like all of the Usborne books of this type, the learning possiblities are great and encourage further investigation of the topics in the book.

This book is set in the time of the New Kingdom, which was the height of prosperity and power in ancient Egypt.

The book, through its simple text and drawings, explains daily life at that time, as well as agriculture, religion, and war.

Long-fascinated by the Egyptian belief in the spirit world and their burial rites, I found these topics well-explained. I myself learned a lot from this book.

It also explains hieroglyphics and the construction of the famous pyramids. Detailed drawings of every new concept makes learning painless --these illustrations show the amount and quality of the research that is done by the Usborne writers.

Are your children or students researching Egypt? This is a great book to add to their collection. Pharaohs and Pyramids touches every part of Egyptian life - religion, government, leisure, Pharaohs, pyramids, burial, etc. The information is presented in narrative form with scenes from the life of an Egyptian boy named Nakht. You go where Nakht goes, and see what Nakht sees, and you get an glimpse of Ancient Egypt along the way. The illustrations are great. My only criticism is that some of the illustrations are inappropriate -skimpy outifts and the like, but I solved the problem with a permanent magic marker!

Although drawn more in the style of cartoons than encyclopaedia illustrations, the pictures are clear and often lovely. This book gives children a good look into the life of ancient Egyptians.

What a surprising combination of a book that actually is much better than expected and yet disappointing. The introduction of the book is great, leading the children towards apprehension of time, and the map of the Nile is a winner, wish I had it as a poster! Through the book the pictures could though often do with a more work on them, it's like some of the pages aren't fully made. And some photos show informations you wish the text told the children about. But the book does a better job helping them to coprihend the everyday life than any other I've seen, and it's just when it comes to religion and the pharaoh than it becomes a bit disappointing. When working with the 6 to 10 years old on Egypt it was the religious sermonises that got to them. And I just can't help but think how can such a good book miss the opportunity to introduce the Canopic Jars, and then ... WHY ON EARTH ARE THE EGYPTIANS COLORED SO LIGHT SKINNED???