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mari1532's review against another edition
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
4.0
I listened to this audiobook with Audible.
Brief Summary: This book examines the biographies and legacies of six women who ruled Ancient Egypt: Merneith (consort and regent in the First Dynasty), Neferusobek (Pharoh of the Twelfth Dynasty), Hatshepsut (consort and Pharoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty), Nefertiti (consort of the Eighteenth Dynasty), Tawosret (Pharoh of the Nineteenth Dynasty) and Cleopatra VII (Pharoh of Ptolemy Dynasty).
Thoughts: I had listened to Cooney's Great Courses on women in Ancient Egypt and was excited to dive into this book. I enjoyed it immensely. My favourite was the section focused on Nefertiti, who of the six women discussed is probably the second most recognizable. However, I did not know a great deal about her story. Cooney does an excellent job of discussing the known biographical information of Nefertiti as well as the new research concerning what may have happened to her after the death of her spouse. It is always fascinating to learn about new research.
I also enjoyed the discussion of Cleopatra. I think one of the things that is most difficult to remember when learning about Cleopatra in particular is that she was the loser of a conflict and as a result much of what we know about her is through the patriarchal and xenophobic Roman Generals who defeated her. As a result, Cooney's approach to discussing Cleopatra as a successful ruler was refreshing and a counterbalance to many of the sources from the period in which Cleopatra lived.
I will say that the thing I liked least about this book was how it kept linking the lack of favour for female rule in Ancient periods to today. I think that it was fine to draw that line in the introduction, but it felt a little repetitive after a while. Also, it is difficult to make historical figures out to be proto-feminists, which it did feel like Cooney was trying to argue in certain areas throughout the book. That is not to say that some of the six women discussed did not do things for the women in their societies, but I think it would be a leap to say that their use of power improved the lives of all women within society.
If you are interested in female rulers, Ancient Egypt, or history more generally this is an interesting read that will encourage you to seek out more information.
Brief Summary: This book examines the biographies and legacies of six women who ruled Ancient Egypt: Merneith (consort and regent in the First Dynasty), Neferusobek (Pharoh of the Twelfth Dynasty), Hatshepsut (consort and Pharoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty), Nefertiti (consort of the Eighteenth Dynasty), Tawosret (Pharoh of the Nineteenth Dynasty) and Cleopatra VII (Pharoh of Ptolemy Dynasty).
Thoughts: I had listened to Cooney's Great Courses on women in Ancient Egypt and was excited to dive into this book. I enjoyed it immensely. My favourite was the section focused on Nefertiti, who of the six women discussed is probably the second most recognizable. However, I did not know a great deal about her story. Cooney does an excellent job of discussing the known biographical information of Nefertiti as well as the new research concerning what may have happened to her after the death of her spouse. It is always fascinating to learn about new research.
I also enjoyed the discussion of Cleopatra. I think one of the things that is most difficult to remember when learning about Cleopatra in particular is that she was the loser of a conflict and as a result much of what we know about her is through the patriarchal and xenophobic Roman Generals who defeated her. As a result, Cooney's approach to discussing Cleopatra as a successful ruler was refreshing and a counterbalance to many of the sources from the period in which Cleopatra lived.
I will say that the thing I liked least about this book was how it kept linking the lack of favour for female rule in Ancient periods to today. I think that it was fine to draw that line in the introduction, but it felt a little repetitive after a while. Also, it is difficult to make historical figures out to be proto-feminists, which it did feel like Cooney was trying to argue in certain areas throughout the book. That is not to say that some of the six women discussed did not do things for the women in their societies, but I think it would be a leap to say that their use of power improved the lives of all women within society.
If you are interested in female rulers, Ancient Egypt, or history more generally this is an interesting read that will encourage you to seek out more information.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Suicide attempt, Child death, Classism, Death, Misogyny, Violence, Xenophobia, Colonisation, Infidelity, Chronic illness, Mental illness, Suicide, Murder, Pregnancy, Adult/minor relationship, Death of parent, War, Incest, Sexism, and Miscarriage
leweylibrary's review against another edition
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
3.75
I've always been a sucker for ancient Egyptian history and culture, and it was interesting reading this since I just read novels about Nefertiti and Cleopatra's daughter recently. No wonder Michelle Moran wrote those books, there's so much in this history that can be left to our interpretation because there's so much info we don't know for sure. I did appreciate that this author mentioned that a lot, but, by the same token, I feel like many of my history professors from undergrad would've scolded her for some of those assumptions and lack of evidence. This book was also just a lot shorter than I wanted too because of that lack of concrete fact, but it did help keep up the pacing.
With those negatives out of the way, I did enjoy this book! I think it's interesting to look at history this way, at how these women who DID have power and ruled a country did so, but they had to do so differently than men and use the system to their advantage. But the system also ended up screwing all of them over too which did not make the book feel optimistic about how much chance women have to actually rule. The book also largely ignores most things outside of the gender binary, but that's an entirely different issue. I did like the explict connections to more current events like the 2016 election and current female politicians.
With those negatives out of the way, I did enjoy this book! I think it's interesting to look at history this way, at how these women who DID have power and ruled a country did so, but they had to do so differently than men and use the system to their advantage. But the system also ended up screwing all of them over too which did not make the book feel optimistic about how much chance women have to actually rule. The book also largely ignores most things outside of the gender binary, but that's an entirely different issue. I did like the explict connections to more current events like the 2016 election and current female politicians.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism and Misogyny
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