Order from a Major Online Bookstore
Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine
Save Your Time And Money
| AnyBook4Less.com | Order from a Major Online Bookstore |
|
| Home | Store List | FAQ | Contact Us | | ||
| Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine Save Your Time And Money |
||
 |
Title: The Mysterious Death of Tutankhamun by P. C. Doherty ISBN: 0-7867-1075-6 Publisher: Carroll & Graf Pub. Date: November, 2002 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $26.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 2.5 (2 reviews)
Rating: 1
Summary: Yet Another Unscholarly Potboiler on Tutankhamun
Comment: We would never allow nondoctors to write medical treatises (one hopes, anyway); yet non-scholars who write on ancient Egypt in general, and Tutankhamun (or the El-Amarna epoch) in particular, are truly a dime a dozen in every respect. This book is on a par with Bob Brier's "thriller" on the putative murder of Tutankhamun. Ignorance of Egyptian language and history are outstanding here, the constant capitalization of epithets (real and imaginary--mostly imaginary)creates a hysterical tone, and the last chapter (fictional) is simply grotesque. One wonderful howler is that there are two references to "iced melon"--where would the Egyptians procure (and keep) ICE, of all things? Please, if you want delightfully readable AND absolutely accurate treatments of Tutankhamun, read "Akhenaten" and "The Complete Tutankhamun," both by Nicholas Reeves, and skip this overwrought mess. Oh, and one last thing--as genuinely interesting (if quite unprovable) as it may be to speculate that Tutankhamun had Marfan's syndrome, it is as silly to say that the many images of the King seated show that he was physically weak as to say (citing an old joke here)that Walter Cronkite had no legs because you never saw him standing.
Rating: 4
Summary: A good book marred by editing problems
Comment: I have read and much enjoyed P.C. Doherty's books of Ancient Egytptian historical fiction, so I thought I'd read this "scholarly" volume.
Doherty makes some excellent points in his explanation of Tut's death. I especially liked his opinion on whether or not Tut was murdered, which is much different from the view presented in Bob Brier's "Murder of Tutankhamun." I recommend reading both books as it is interesting to see the different conclusions drawn using the same physical evidence.
What I did not like was that this book was not edited very well. There are several typos and some awkward sentences (clauses piled upon clauses.) Also, the 4th chapter is extremely repetitive of points made earlier in the book.
And finally, the 5th chapter is a complete work of fiction built around historical events. Though I like historical fiction, it doesn't belong in a book where Doherty has previously discussed historical fact. Were I not aware of Doherty's previous works of fiction, I would wonder where this chapter came from.
This book is worth reading, but does have some minor flaws.
 |
Title: The Slayers of Seth : A Story of Intrigue and Murder Set in Ancient Egypt by P. C. Doherty ISBN: 0312282648 Publisher: St. Martin's Minotaur Pub. Date: 03 August, 2002 List Price(USD): $23.95 |
 |
Title: A Path of Shadows by Lauren Haney ISBN: 0060521902 Publisher: Avon Pub. Date: 30 September, 2003 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
 |
Title: The Gates of Hell: A Mystery of Alexander the Great by Paul C. Doherty ISBN: 0786711574 Publisher: Carroll & Graf Pub. Date: July, 2003 List Price(USD): $24.00 |
 |
Title: Isabella and the Strange Death of Edward II by Paul C. Doherty ISBN: 0786711930 Publisher: Carroll & Graf Pub. Date: March, 2003 List Price(USD): $25.00 |
 |
Title: Corpse Candle: A Medieval Mystery Featuring Hugh Corbett by P. C. Doherty ISBN: 0312300875 Publisher: St. Martin's Minotaur Pub. Date: 01 December, 2002 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
Thank you for visiting www.AnyBook4Less.com and enjoy your savings!
Copyright� 2001-2021 Send your comments
