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 Posted: Sat Mar 24, 2007 3:54 pm
I love a good novel set in ancient Egypt. Most of the books I read are non-fiction, and I find them to be fascinating and highly educational. But after a while of only non-fiction reading it can get a little dry- I start wanting something to breathe the life back into my studies. I want to be immersed in a living culture- not just picking over mummified bodies and dusty relics... I want to see them come alive.
It's hard finding good historical fiction, though- at least if you expect the authors to remain fairly accurate in their portrayal of these ancient cultures. So when I find an author who meets my standards it's a momentous occasion! Especially if they've written more than one book... if there's a whole series, I may have my literary cravings satisfied for months at a time!
So I'd like to start this thread for people to talk about the authors and the titles they've particularly enjoyed. Tell me about the basic premise of the book (but no spoilers, please!), tell me how you got it- or why you got it. And most importantly, tell me what you liked about it- or didn't like about it. And anything else which comes to mind! Or if you don't currently have a book you'd like to talk about, tell me what you look for in a good Egyptian novel!
Happy reading! heart
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Posted: Sat Mar 24, 2007 4:04 pm
A new novel just arrived last evening, and I can't wait to get into it! The title is Lady of the Reeds by Pauline Gedge- the author is unknown to me except through the recommendations of several friends... all with an interest in ancient Egypt which is just as deep and personal as my own. So I'm expecting this to be good! 3nodding
I really hope that it will be, since I picked it up as a gift for my sister's upcoming birthday! Lady of the Reeds follows a young woman of the peasant class as she gains admission into the medical tradition and becomes a young doctor- and apparently a pretty good one! It's mostly a romance story between herself (peasant born doctor) and the son of one of her most illustrious clients... but I picked it mainly in hopes of a realistic view of what it was like to be a young doctor in ancient Egypt. I've heard that the portrayal of Egyptian medicine is fairly accurate in there, and if it passes the test of my pre-reading then I'll pass it on to my sister- who is also a young doctor, working with pediatrics. whee
But I need to read the whole thing before I give it to her- because I want to know exactly what I'm placing into her hands, lol! And this is fun because it gives me a perfectly valid excuse to blow off practically every thing else and concentrate only on reading during my days off (I'll still be checking in here during my lunch hours at work, though, of course^_^). I'm really banking on this book working out, because by the time I finish reading it I won't have time to preview another gift before I give it! I'll let you all know what I think of the book when I finish.
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Posted: Sun Mar 25, 2007 6:40 am
I have never seen a novel based on Ancient Egypt although I am currently writing one myself. Unfortunatly I have no free time left (or enough) to actually sit down and write as I have two part time jobs, go to college full time and have tonnes of college work to do.
In your opinion, what is your favourite novel? I want to start reading some books to get me started again.
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Posted: Sun Mar 25, 2007 3:18 pm
I liked reading Lynda S. Robinson's Lord Meren mysteries. There were six books in the series. I found the first three books to be quite enjoyable, but the last three made the series kind of down, at least to me. It is still good to read. The books take place during the reign of King Tutankhamun and follows the exploits of Meren, the Eyes and Ears of the Pharaoh.
I am always looking for more Ancient Egypt-related fiction.
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Posted: Mon Mar 26, 2007 2:24 pm
Oh I loved the Lord Meren mysteries- I actually bought them, which is rare for me to buy fiction. I usually reserve the shelf space for reference books since I rarely re-read a novel. I should probably go back over them one of these days, though, since now I'm having a hard time remembering what exactly it was that I liked about them, lol!
Another author I'm really coming to enjoy is Christian Jacq- he's a French egyptologist, but he also writes fiction. Thanks to his career in egyptology, he keeps his facts impeccably straight- there's even the rare footnote citing museum ID numbers for actual artifacts which are incorporated into his story. You can go check out the item itself and get a better visual. I've heard from one person who found his writing a little dry- he does emphasize ma'at and order a lot, though, and this lady is Dionysian... not a really big fan of law and order. So I think that he will probably appeal to someone who is really interested in the time period and that specific culture- but perhaps not so much the casual reader. I've been using his books to get a feel for the dynasties, though, since individual kings and their reigns and acheivements are some of the weak points in my understanding of egyptology. I'm almost ashamed to say that I'm doing my studying with fiction... but at least this fiction is written by an actual egyptologist, and it does make those names and historical events much more real to "see" them in action. wink
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Posted: Sat Mar 31, 2007 5:44 pm
I found one at a thrift store called River God by Wilbur Smith. I haven't read it yet, but I'd like too sometime.
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Posted: Wed Apr 04, 2007 8:00 pm
Kem Pet Unsu I found one at a thrift store called River God by Wilbur Smith. I haven't read it yet, but I'd like too sometime. Oh I loved that one! LOL- I keep saying that, don't I? But the main character in River God really has a strong and likeable personality, and you really become attached to him and his charges- this was one of the few novels that actually had me wincing in my seat and gasping out loud as the plot reeled by... which would have been embarrassing except that it was a lady here at work who loaned it to me, so at least she saw how much I was enjoying it. I'd have chosen that novel for my sister's gift except for the numerous references to ***** throughout the story... never as a good thing, mind, but it's still there. If you can get past that, it's a must-read novel. So I've finally finished Gedge's Lady of the Reeds, which was a wonderfully vibrant look at the different lifestyles of the peasant, noble, and royal classes. The portrayal of Egyptian medicine was accurate, too, although there was regrettably little of it. I don't think I'll be using it as my sister's gift, however, because the story is frustratingly depressing- almost every character in the novel was either tragic or downright reprehensible from my point of view. *sighs* So now I will be re-reading one of Lynda S. Robinson's Lord Meren mysteries... quickly... in hopes of finding a suitable replacement before I leave for my sister's celebration later on this month. But I'm glad that I got this exposure to Gedge because she really is a good author- and I'll probably end up donating this title to the library, since this was one of her selections which they did not already have. arrow
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Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2007 1:54 pm
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Posted: Fri Apr 27, 2007 7:33 pm
So I ended up making one of Christian Jacq's books my gift choice, instead of the other one I mentioned earlier. I picked the first book in the Stone of Light series, called Nefer the Silent- this series is based on finds in the ruins of Deir el Medina, a village of artisans and one of the few places where the daily life of non-royalty is very well preserved. Jacq weaves real names and events into his narrative, and as always it is well written and shows a love of ma'at which comes through clearly in all of his writings. There is even a brief glimpse of Egyptian medicine toward the end of the book- which I hope will figure more prominently in the other installments in the series (of which there are three- making four books in total).
Jacq has also written a five-book series following the life of Ramses the Great (Ramses), and a trilogy of books (Queen of Freedom Trilogy) following Queen Ahhotep and her sons as they liberate Egypt from the Hyksos. He has one other fiction series and one novel so far, but I have never seen them. He also writes non-fiction- I've only read one of his non-fiction books: Magic and Mystery in Ancient Egypt... sounds like a fiction title, doesn't it? It's a non-fiction treatment of the subject, however- so you might want to check closely when you decide to take one of his books home, to make sure of whether it's fictional or not!
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Posted: Tue May 15, 2007 10:45 pm
Pauline Gedge. Someone already mentioned here.
There's also Elizabeth Peters. Her books are mysteries that take place in Ancient Egypt.
There's another author that I can't think of at the moment, but next time I'm at work I'll find out. smile
*Btw, Pauline Gedge is my favorite (well, the only one I've read sweatdrop xd ). I read The Twelfth Transforming and The Hippopotamus Marsh. The second one is part if a trilogy, which I haven't been able to finish reading. sad
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Posted: Thu May 17, 2007 3:38 pm
Well, I was at work again, and the other author is P.C. Doherty.
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