Red Land, Black Land: Daily Life in Ancient Egypt

Red Land, Black Land is a very approachable book on the long history of Egyptian civilization. Mertz’ quirky fiction style makes this a very personable approach to a discipline than can be unbearably dry. As a bonus, if one follows the series she writes under the nom de plum, Elizabeth Peters, there is a certain thrill in recognizing gods and archaeologists alike from those pages of fiction.

I’m not going to write a long review. Others have already done that better than I could.I never felt any of this book was ‘hard going’, as some books on this subject can be. The author’s flashes of humor made it a joy to read. And compelling! I couldn’t put it down.JUST BUY THIS BOOK! I doubt you’ll regret it.

I thought this book was very refreshing. The author pointed out that while there were many theories on what particular artifacts and inscriptions meant, it is true that we know very little about ancient Egyptian culture and life for certain. Things that I had read in the past that I thought were known facts turned out to be far from it. It seems that each author has their own ideas of how to interpret the information available. There is nothing wrong with that but the author of this book seemed to have no particular axe to grind. She is a very witty writer and has a charming sense of humor. The book is written in such a way that avoids the sense that she is saying, "I know a lot about ancient Egypt and you don't." Although now I know less than I thought I knew before, I feel that the book gave me a fresh new way to look at the subject of ancient Egypt. I think this is a better book than I am able to get across in this review.

Having read some of her fiction, I was interested in learning more about life in ancient Egypt from Barbara Mertz. This book was well written and has kept my attention as I have gone through it. I was surprised to find out that the copyright date was over fifty years ago, and I wonder what new information has come to light since the 1970's when this was revised.I think that if Amazon is offering a scholarly book that is this old, we should have been told this before we ordered it.I did note that it was re-published in 2008, so obviously the publisher thinks it is still timely enough.

This could be such a boring history...but its NOT!! It is as if an expert on Egypt (which she is) came to visit, and you are just bantering back and forth in your living room. Its edgy style keeps you engaged, interested, and even laughing while absorbing 3,000 years of history and all that goes with it. If you are going to Egypt (or just interested) read this (and her other books). You will be glad you discovered her...as she points you towards all of the discoveries of a fascinating land. She also writes mysteries under another name (which I've just bought and which I expect to be as fun as this one).

One of my favorite mystery series of all time is Elizabeth Peters/Barbara Mertz/Barbara Michael's Amelia Peabody Mysteries. When I first discovered it, I thought it was a lost treasure and I have savored every book since that first one. I also enjoy her romance/mystery books as Barbara Michaels.I will be honest and say that when I first began reading the Amelia Peabody Mysteries some of the Egyptian discussions went a bit over my head. I found my Egyptian History to be sorely lacking, so when I discovered that Barbara Mertz/Elizabeth Peters wrote some non-fiction books about Egyptian History I was thrilled and I new it would be a good way to start learning a bit of information about one of my new favorite topics, Egypt.Temples, Tombs and Hieroglyphics is the first book she wrote and deals more with the Egyptian rulers and dynasties. Red Land, Black Land is the second one and deals more with the Egyptian people. It covers a wide variety of topics including rising children, pets, women's lives, clothing, jewelry, towns, houses, magic and religion, science and medicine, and painting and sculpture. It is extremely interesting and I found all of the topics engaging and concise. I believe that Barbara Mertz/Elizabeth Peters/Barbara Michaels has such a rare gift she could make the history of sandpaper interesting. I have read some reviews where people felt that she expressed some of her own opinions and views too freely, but I thought that she did a good job about making known what other popular opinions are in the field even if she doesn't necessarily agree with them. As I have begun purchasing more books about Egyptian History, I am very glad that I started with these books that have provided me with excellent background essential information that makes reading more detailed involved books much easier.

Barbara Mertz' wit & humor really brought the ancient Egyptians to life! She pretty much covered every aspect of their daily lives, without ever a boring moment. BUT, as Ms Mertz claims (& no doubt believes) that the Pharoah Khufu was buried in the Great Pyramid of Giza, I find it necessary to deduct 1 star. And since the book is so entertaining, I can forgive her that transgression.

I haven't read all that much on Ancient Egypt since taking Western Civ back in college (1970s!). Bought this Kindle book on a whim as it was listed for sale and looked interesting. Very easy to read for a lay person but still has great detail on how ancient Egyptians probably lived, from royalty down to peasants. Though it is not specifically a history of ancient Egypt, Mertz goes into enough historical detail to get me re-interested in the subject and I will be buying her book, Temples, Tombs and Hieroglyphs next.

Every book ever written by the late Barbara Mertz (non-fiction & fiction) is un-put-downable, absolutely compulsive reading. And this gives a different perspective on the ordinary people, unusual subject matter.

Having read the Amelia Peabody series, I was keen to know how Barbara Mertz would deal with a factual account of Ancient Egyptian life. I wasn't disappointed. She writes in a down to earth but knowledgeable way that is interesting and informative. She tells you when the theories clash and gives you her opinion. This is a very readable book.

Fantastic.

Great book about life in Ancient Egypt.

I was surprised at how enjoyable this book was. I had purchased another book on daily life in Egypt and it was much more scholarly if you take my meaning, however while just as informative Barbara Mertz writes with a sense of humour and makes the people of this ancient civilisation seem so much more human. In the book I purchased there are some rather grainy black and white photos but there are also beautiful colour plates and some simple sketches to give you an idea of exactly what the author is describing. Anyway for me the words are more important and the pages just skipped by. Highly enjoyable.