Be a Scribe! Working for a Better Life in Ancient Egypt -- Book Review

 

Disclosure: I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. 

Have you ever wondered about what life was like in ancient Egypt? We hear stories of the royalty like Cleopatra. We hear stories about the slaves in the Bible. But what was life like for the average person? What were the better jobs? How were people treated? Today I get to share a book that is about a father taking his son up the Nile to a school far away from home in hopes that his son will have a better life. The original story was written in ancient Egyptian language but has been translated to English. The book is Be a Scribe! Working for a Better Life in Ancient Egypt by Michael Hoffen, Christian Casey and Jen Thum. It is recommended for ages 8 to 12.

From the Publisher:

AN IMMERSIVE STORY OF DAILY LIFE IN ANCIENT EGYPT

This is an extraordinary translation of a papyrus dating from ancient Egypt’s Middle Kingdom era by Michael Hoffen, the 16-year-old author of Be a Scribe! with the help of co-authors Dr. Christian Casey and Dr. Jen Thum.

Michael Hoffen became fascinated by the text, known as The Instruction of Khety, when he learned that it tells the tale of a teenage boy living almost 4,000 years ago—Pepi.

Pepi wonders what career path he should choose, an important matter still contemplated today by millions of teenagers forty centuries later. His father Khety takes him on a long journey up the Nile to enroll him in a school far away from home, where Pepi will learn to read and write. Along the way, Khety explains 18 other terrible jobs Pepi could end up having to work at if he is not hired as a scribe.

This tale of a teenage boy in ancient Egypt shows readers that working for a living has never been easy!

Sail up the Nile with an ancient Egyptian father and son and discover what daily life was like along the way. Experience the wonderful world of ancient Egypt with the help of countless artifacts and paintings. Delight in four-thousand-year-old humor and immerse yourself in the choices facing a teenage boy in Egypt then.

From Me:

What an interesting way to learn about life in Ancient Egypt. A 16-year-old translated an ancient text into English and with the help of other professionals share it with kids 8- to 12-year-old. This book is more than just that story though. It is full of information about life then and helps kids interpret the language and why the father may have said some of the things about the various careers the son could consider. It is also full of photographs of artifacts from Ancient Egypt as well as some vocabulary words written in hieroglyphics as well as a pronunciation. There is just so much packed into this book. 

I love how interesting it is to look through and read. The expressions are well explained and related to some from our own society. There are connections made throughout the book between Ancient Egypt and our world now. It is a wonderful introduction to Ancient Egypt and should be used in every elementary/middle school classroom that is studying Ancient Egypt. I was reading this book at Dunkin' the other night while waiting for Hazel's college course to finish and one of the employees was very interested in what I was reading and thought the book looked cool. It is colorful and attractive and will draw readers in. They will be learning but also enjoying the experience. It is full of wonder and information. I hope you will check it out! You can also get a free educator's guide to use with this book from the Be a Scribe! website.