River in the desert: Modern travels in ancient Egypt [Hardcover]

Paul William Roberts (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: 1993

Journalist Paul Roberts takes us along as he scales the great pyramids, spends the night in an ancient tomb, navigates the Nile, lives among monks and travels the Arabian Desert by camel.  In place after place, we encounter the awesome grandeur of Egypt's past--and hear the beguiling story of its present.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

From its early pages, with quotes from such disparate sources as the ancient Greek historian Herodotus and the late mystic Gurdjieff, this travel book proves unconventional, highly entertaining, instructive and beautifully written. Roberts, a Canadian journalist and screenwriter, spent three months taking in the ambience of Egypt's great sites and cities, from the desert to Cairo and Alexandria and along the Nile to Luxor, Thebes and Aswan. His observations, punctuated by those of other writers who visited the country (such as Flaubert, Agatha Christie and Norman Mailer) reveal a well-stocked mind, a charming wit and sophisticated interest in people. "If I were to travel abroad only once in my life," Roberts notes in the preface, "Egypt would be my destination." The elegance and verve of his personalized and seductive account of this ancient culture's history, mythology and politics will likely prompt many readers to agree.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Kirkus Reviews

Fine, quirky account of Roberts's recent travels through Egypt's teeming modern cities, Pharaonic monuments, ancient monasteries, and Edenic oases. Always insightful, frequently amusing, the Toronto-based journalist brings a fresh vision to a familiar subject. In addition to visiting such sites as the temples of Luxor, Karnak, and Abu Simbel, the Monastery of St. Catherine in the Sinai desert, the burial chamber of the pyramid of Mycerinus (where he spends the night), and neon-and-Naugahyde Red Sea resorts, Roberts takes us to an eerie Sufi ceremony in the back streets of Cairo, to the crest of Mount Sinai (where bus loads of grumbling pilgrims await the dawn), and on a hot-air balloon flight over the Valley of the Kings. He also interviews Nobel-winning author Naguib Mahfouz and noted scholar Ahmad Shalaby--and finds both to be pompous and overbearing. Roberts is far more impressed with now-Secretary General of the UN Boutros-Gahli, whom he describes as ``a formidable optimist'' and who evidently left the author a wiser man for having met him. Roberts's knowledge of and affection for Egypt is palpable, but these qualities do not blind him to the inanities of the land. He traverses a desert on a camel called ``Michael Jackson''; he wonders why a condom should have been named after Ramses, who reputedly sired 186 children; he speculates that the lack of conversational ability of a German mortician he meets may be ``an occupational hazard.'' Informative and entertaining: Roberts is the sort of witty, knowledgeable, stimulating guide every armchair traveler hankers for but seldom finds. -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 394 pages
• Publisher: Random House; 1st edition (1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0394221397
• ISBN-13: 978-0394221397
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #9,476,777 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars river in the desert, April 10, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: River in the Desert: Modern Travels in Ancient Egypt (Hardcover)

I first read Journey of the Magi, I picked the book up at the library. I was totally shocked at the content, but nonetheless hooked. So much so that I went on the Net to track down the author to see if he had written other books. At first I wondered if he was arrogant, then I saw the true scholary intelligence of the writer. This is a brilliant man. A realist. If you wish to read something educational and so funny that I actually laugh out loud, this is the writer for you. I also felt that no matter his circumstances, he truly is a good compassionate man. I first read The journey of the Magi in January, I have since gone on to read all five of his books and I am a lifer. A brilliant read.