Red Land, Black Land

Daily Life in Ancient Egypt

By: Barbara Mertz

Narrated by: Lorna Raver

Length: 14 hrs and 56 mins

Publisher's summary

Esteemed Egyptologist Barbara Mertz updates her widely praised social history of the people of ancient Egypt, which was originally published in 1968. Combining impeccable scholarship with a delightfully personal style, the author reconstructs the life of the Egyptians from birth to death, and beyond death, too.

She also presents much fascinating detail on the building of the pyramids and the intricate art of mummification. Students and laymen alike will enjoy the wealth of authentic material on every aspect of Egyptian life that Mertz provides.

©2008 MPM Manor, Inc. (P)2008 Tantor

Critic reviews

"One can only highly recommend the book." ( Natural History)

A perfect audiobook

As an Egyptology student I appreciated the flow and content of the book. As a newly professed audiobook lover, the narrator is charming and I intend on seeking out more books narrated by her specifically. If/when I publish an audiobook I will be sure to find someone like her.

WHAT A GREAT LISTEN !

This book was a real surprise, I mean- what can you really expect from this title? Well how about a superbly written, warm, articulate, intelligent, insightful, memorable experience. In other words, Non-fiction at its best. Though its been years since I listened to this-I can still hear the narration in my head, partly because I relistened to parts of it repeatedly-sure, but mostly because the book and narration worked so well together and told a surprisingly great story, obviously one memorable enough for me to go back years later and still be able to remember how good it was.and want to review it.

Excellent Narrator, A Little Dry & Repetitive

Would you recommend Red Land, Black Land to your friends? Why or why not?

Probably if that person has a strong interest in ancient Egypt. I enjoy documentaries and had a general interest in Egypt and thought this would be right up my alley. The first half or so I was fairly intrigued and definitely learned new things along the way. By the second half it really felt like it was dragging and that certain facts kept repeating themselves. There also isn't as strong a narrative to this as I would have liked. The chapter order was likely logical to the historian author but it's difficult to understand cohesively if listening. Overall I would say it was enjoyable, just understand it might start to feel slow and less interesting later in the book.

What does Lorna Raver bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The narrator was excellent. She was probably the best part of this book. The author clearly has a wry sense of humor and I felt like the narrator brought that out, like she was telling me all this herself, humorous anecdotes included.

outdated archaeology but good info

archaeology is not so cut and dry anymore. outdated. especially since no pyramid was ever a tomb. but.the cultural info is good. good storytelling and it's charitable to the worldview of the dynastics. but pre dynastic is mostly unknown and far older. the finest artifacts come from that period and somehow they forgot how to make them in the later dynastic period? all the finest and hardest stone statues are the oldest. same with the 35,000 perfectly machined stone jars perfectly in tact. and the siltstone vase I could go on. don't expect archaeology from this book. expect cultural info that is interesting and engaging but take the authors comments about dates and pyramids with a huge grain of salt.

Great history, perfect narrator

This is an excellent social history covering dozens of topics with authority, a lovely sense of humor, and a discerning eye for humanizing detail. It's clear Ms Mertz is a dedicated scholar and an expert in her field. The narrator is wonderful. Her tone exactly matches the material. The effect is that of having a conversation about ancient Egypt with a knowledgeable and lively friend.

Very Well Written

Packed full of historical evidence, findings, and various theories about how the ancient Egyptians lived, yet manages to balance it with witty and engaging commentary.

Great

The book was very interesting and well narrated. The author included enough humorous asides to keep things from getting too dry. Speculation was clearly identified as such, and kept to a minimum. Given the available sources, the author did an admirable job of explaining daily life in ancient Egypt, including the various social classes.

In general

Excellent introduction to the subject. Has much detail and is not overtaxing. I recommend this as an entry level reading.

wonderful view of every day Life

Gives some wonderful insight how the ancient Egyptian life still has affect on our Modern Life.

Could not finish it

I found the narrator's voice irritating and her tone at times condescending . Found I could not listen to completion