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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
kloughlin's review against another edition
informative
slow-paced
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship and Incest
Moderate: Suicide, War, and Death
Minor: Infidelity, Abortion, and Murder
fkshg8465's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
3.0
I thought I was going to be really interested in this book, but the more I read, the more I wondered why. It was certainly informative and educational, and I’ve definitely learned a lot. However, there were too many blanks filled in by her perspective and expertise. I understand that often had to happen when interpreting history. The issue for me was that it was sometimes hard to distinguish between supposition and recreated facts.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Pregnancy, Violence, Murder, Physical abuse, Suicide, Emotional abuse, Grief, Infidelity, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Gore, Incest, Miscarriage, War, and Xenophobia
lauramusich's review against another edition
informative
slow-paced
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Incest and Adult/minor relationship
Minor: Violence and Murder
melodyseestrees's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
slow-paced
2.75
Too many comparisons to radically different political situations. The author used many sexist tropes on how Hilary Clinton could've found success in 2016 in the middle of chapters about Egyptian Royalty. It felt more out of place and distracting than relatable. Although little is known about some of these Women I can't help but feel that some were rushed just to slip in mentions of United States politics. It would've been nice to get a little more on how we know what we know about these women.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Incest, and Death
Moderate: Infertility, Murder, Misogyny, and Religious bigotry
qwerty88's review against another edition
informative
slow-paced
3.25
The author is very certain about people's emotions based on a few sculptures from thousands of years ago.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Infertility, Incest, Murder, Suicide, Adult/minor relationship, and Misogyny
at least there are lots of footnotesmariakureads's review
informative
reflective
medium-paced
3.0
I wanted to fall in love with this, I did, but anytime the author grabbed my attention with the history, she would thrown in current events of the time in which this book was written to try to highlight a point that she was trying to make.
In some cases I could see what she meant and in others, it felt more as if the author was driving her opinion on to the book which changed the flow of the paragraph for me.
Overall, I enjoyed how this book highlighted these six women, provided their backgrounds and story, even if it was still unclear as Egyptologists are still uncovering more so I'm very intrigued by what the book provided as a starting point of interest.
I do wish that some of what was mentioned in the footnotes were actually part of the book as it could have helped highlight certain moments as to why there is uncertainty within the community as to what were the events that lead certain moments to be written as such.
In some cases I could see what she meant and in others, it felt more as if the author was driving her opinion on to the book which changed the flow of the paragraph for me.
Overall, I enjoyed how this book highlighted these six women, provided their backgrounds and story, even if it was still unclear as Egyptologists are still uncovering more so I'm very intrigued by what the book provided as a starting point of interest.
I do wish that some of what was mentioned in the footnotes were actually part of the book as it could have helped highlight certain moments as to why there is uncertainty within the community as to what were the events that lead certain moments to be written as such.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Incest, Infertility, Infidelity, Misogyny, and Murder
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