Treasury of Egyptian Mythology: Classic Stories of Gods, Goddesses, Monsters & Mortals by Donna Jo Napoli

Treasury of Egyptian Mythology: Classic Stories of Gods, Goddesses, Monsters & Mortals Reviews

• 
  Emtiaj

  
  জনাব মোস্তফা মীর, শিখ কিভাবে বই লিখতে হয়।
  
  অসাধারণ একটা বই আর সেই সাথে অসাধারণ আঁকা। বইটা বাচ্চাদের জন্য লেখা হয়েছে কিন্তু আমার মনে হয়েছে যথেষ্ট চাইল্ডিশ না।
  
  গ্রিক মিথে নেক্টার খেলেই দেবত্বে উপনীত হওয়া যায় কিন্তু ঈজিপশিয়ান মিথে যা কষ্ট করতে হয়। আর দেব-দেবীদের খাওয়ার মেনু দেখেতো অবাক হলাম। গ্রিক মিথের ব্যাপ্তি অনেক বড় সেই তুলনায় এটা বেশ কম মনে হল।
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
• 
  Abigail

  American author Donna Jo Napoli and British illustrator Christina Balit join forces in this marvelous collection of ancient Egyptian myths published by National Geographic. Beginning (appropriately enough) with creation, Napoli discusses the complex and interrelated pantheon of Egyptian gods and goddesses, from the sun god and creator Ra, to Ra's children Shu (god of wind) and Tefnut (goddess of moisture), and Shu and Tefnut's children, Geb (god of the earth) and Nut (goddess of the sky). From this third generation came the most famous gods and goddesses, Set (Seth), Aset (Isis), Usir (Osirus), Nebet Hut (Nepthys) and Heru Wer (Horus the Elder). The story of Set's betrayal of Usir, and of Aset's grief and her search for her brother-husband, is laid out, as is the birth and coming of age of Heru Sa Aset (Horus the Younger). Other deities discussed include Inpu (Anubis), Tehuti (Thoth), Hut Heru (Hathor), Sekhmet (Sachmis), Nit (Neith), Khnum (Chnoumis), Sobek (Souchos), and Bastet (Bast). The book concludes with a discussion of ancient funerary practices, and how the beliefs concerning death and rebirth involved many of the deities. A list of deities, timeline, afterword, and list of sources are all included at the rear, in the extensive back matter...
  
  One of five such mythological collaborations between Napoli and Balit - other titles include:
  Treasury of Greek Mythology,
  Treasury of Norse Mythology,
  Tales From the Arabian Nights and
  Treasury of Bible Stories - Treasury of Egyptian Mythology is an immensely informative and engaging work, providing a wonderful introduction to a subject about which I, despite my interest in folklore and mythology, know fairly little. Although familiar with some (although by no means all) of the figures here, the only story I already knew was the one involving Set, Usir and Aset. It's interesting to note that Napoli uses the original Egyptian names for these figures, rather than the Greek ones - Usir rather than Osirus, for instance. Except for Ra and Bastet, which are the same (or practically the same) in both languages, I was more familiar with the Greek names (Anubis, Isis, etc), and was not even aware before picking up Napoli's book, that these were not the original names, but ancient Greek approximations. The stories themselves are fascinating, beautiful, and often mystifying. As Napoli notes in her afterword, many of these deities overlap, in terms of their areas of power and influence, so it is much more difficult to name an Egyptian god or goddess as the definitive sun god, or sky god/goddess, or goddess of childbirth, in the way one might do in other belief systems. I appreciated the discussion in the author's note about sources used - both Egyptian and Greek - and the difficulties involved in sorting out a belief system with scores of overlapping deities, and stories retold in diverse ways across various regions of Egypt, and over the course of millennia.
  
  Although a great lover of folklore and mythology, I initially sought this collection out because I am a great admirer of the artwork of Christina Balit, whose illustrations here do not disappoint, in their beauty and enchantment. I understand that a number of other reviewers have criticized Balit for making her figures too light-skinned, and while I do not subscribe to the Afrocentrist fallacy regarding ancient Egypt - namely, that it was a sub-Saharan black civilization - I do agree that the figures could have been darker - more of the light reddish-brown one sees in so much artwork from this civilization. Leaving that one issue aside, I absolutely loved the visuals here - the vibrant colors, the stylized compositions, the use of golden accents - and was satisfied on an aesthetic level. Although published for children, this is certainly too complex of a book for the very young, so I would recommend it to middle-grade readers and above, who loves mythology, or have an interest in ancient Egypt.
• 
  Kelly Carey

  This book is probably meant for older students, even though it is for Kids. The book provides information regarding the gods and goddesses of Ancient Egypt. It connects well to the Kane Chronicles series and provides extended information about some of the characters from this series. The author attempts to be gentle in regards to describing the illicit behavior of the gods; however, it is difficult to remain PG.
  
  Overall, I was not fond of the illustrations, but I think they were meant to mimics Ancient Egyptian art. I learned a lot from the stories themselves, and I appreciated the text features and chapters that focused on individual gods and goddesses.
• 
  Paula

  Ra spits on the ground and a goddess springs forth. A devoted wife holds a flower so that her husband may inhale the scent and a baby appears among the petals. A woman mourns and fertile farmland turns to dust. Prolific storyteller Donna Jo Napoli brings the ancient Egyptian gods to life for the modern reader - their jealousies, passions and grief are the driving forces in tales that explain creation, the seasons, the afterlife, and natural phenomena. Napoli's tone is swaying and intimate, earthy and incantatory, as if she is spinning tales aloud. "In the beginning...ah, many stories open that way." Sentences are fragmented, phrases are repeated, wonderfully descriptive images are drawn from the physical world: tinkling jewelry, "thorns of anger," hot winds carrying grinding sand. Glowing illustrations by Christina Balit combine the flat, frontal style of ancient tomb paintings with flowing, graceful shapes. Curiously, the artist has chosen a very light skin color for most of the Egyptians - both divine and human - in her paintings, with no explanation offered. Text pages are adorned with patterned borders, textured margins, and scattered stylized stars in gold. These effects, combined with stiff paper and a color palette drawn from semiprecious stones and metals, lend the book a weighty sacramental quality. A lyrical retelling of the braided, interwoven, sometimes contradictory stories from the land of the Sphinx.
  
  For SLJ
• 
  Konstantinos Saliakas

  Εξαιρετικό!!!
• 
  Richard Dominguez

  This is a beautifully illustrated book on Egyptian Gods/Goddesses and how they are believed to come into existence. The book is over-sized and published by National Geographic.
  The pages are glossy, making the colors standout. There are 3 to 4 pages dedicated to each God starting with Ra and ending with Imhotep.
  Included is a map of ancient Egypt, Timeline, A list of characters and there is a beautifully illustrated family tree.
  The author Donna Jo Napoli does a wonderful job of including Egyptian history and topography that may have lead up to the birth of their Gods as well as why the Nile played an important part in the role of the Egyptian Gods.
  This is a beautiful piece for any library, that can be enjoyed by anyone young or old.
• 
  Vaios Pap

  Σπουδαίο θέμα, ελλιπές βιβλίο. Περισσότερο διαβάζετε σαν παραμύθι για παιδιά.
• 
  cindy

  Edit: 2020 Juni
  Ceritanya aku lagi baca The Kane Chronicles, tapi lalu lost pada beberap nama dewa dewi mesir ini, akhirnya disela untuk reread buku ini dulu untuk menyegarkan ingatan.
  
  ***
  
  Berbeda dgn di seri Mitologi Norse yg diceritakan insiden per insiden sehingga interaksi antara para dewa-dewinya tergambar jelas, buku ini menjabarkan dewa-dewi Mesir per subjek Dewa tersebut. Buatku yg sebelumnya hanya tahu dewa Ra dan bbrp nama dewa saja, mmg menambah tahu ttg dewa mesir, tapi lalu seperti pelajaran hapalan, dewa a adalah blablabla, dewa b adalah demikian, dewa c begini begitu, dewa 19 adalah penyanyi #eehhh. Jadi selain cerita di bagian perseteruan Isis-Osiris dengan Set (berlanjut dengan cerita Anubis dan Horus) sebenernya.... aku hanya baca cepat saja, sambil berlama-lama menikmati ilustrasinya.
  
  Oh iya, penamaan dewa-dewinya ternyata beda versi mesir asli dengan versi yunani(?). Tampaknya yg lbh sering kudengar malah yg versi yunani itu. #barutahu #TIL
  
  Nah kalo ttg ilustrasi dan cetakannya, apa mau dikata, mewah dan cantik-cantik betul, berwarna pula gambarnya. Senang banget lihatnya. Bikin ngiler, sayang berat di dompet. ;)
• 
  Pollyor

  I loved the illustrations and enjoyed the storytelling quality of the writing. The vocabulary will be challenging for the average child. Unless a child has previous exposure to the Egyptian gods keeping track of "who is who and what do they do" can easily become confusing. For those reasons (vocabulary and subject familiarity), I would recommend the illustrations for younger children and the writing for older more mature children.
• 
  Ren Puspita

  4 bintang
  
  Setelah baca ketiga buku Donna Jo Napoli yang lain, yaitu Mitologi Yunani, Mitologi Norse dan Kisah 1001 Malam , akhirnya gue mengakhiri binge read dengan buku keempat, Mitologi Mesir. Masih sama - sama dihiasi ilustrasi Christina Balit dan juga masih diceritakan dengan narasi Napoli yang sangat mendramatisir. Tentunya efek drama ini supaya ceritanya ga kering - kering banget, lol. Struktur buku Mitologi Mesir sendiri sama dengan buku Mitologi Yunani. Dimana dewa - dewi diceritakan per bagian. Tentunya juga tak lupa ada bagian Penciptaan, yang mana Penciptaan ini ya sama di semua mitologi. All start from nothing.
  
  Dari buku ini, gue baru tahu kalau selama ini nama Dewa - Dewi Mesir yang dikenal itu sebenarnya adalah penamaan versi Yunani. Sama seperti Ramses yang menjadi Ozymandias, nama - nama seperti Osiris, Isis, Horus, Thoth, Hathor, Horus, Anubis, Nepthys, Set, Bast dll itu sebenarnya adalah alih bahasa dari bahasa Mesir Kuno menjadi Yunani. Di buku ini hanya ada segelintir nama dewa/dewi dalam aksara Mesir Kuno yang dikenal alih2 versi Yunaninya, seperti misalnya Ra, Sobek dan Sekhmet. Jadi kalau kamu tahu nama dewa - dewi Mesir dari Kane Chroniclesnya Rick Riordan, maka ketahuilah kalau Osiris, Isis, Set etc itu bukan nama Mesir, tapi diambil dari versi Yunani Kuno. Napoli sendiri juga menambahkan di catatan, kalau mitologi Mesir itu tidak serapi Mitologi Yunani Kuno. Dimana kalau Yunani Kuno punya Hesiod, Homer, Plato dan Apollodorus, maka mitologi Mesir seperti berserakan. Bisa jadi antara mitologi Mesir dan Yunani itu saling mempengaruhi.
  
  Gue pun baru tahu, terlepas dari kisah Osiris dan Isis beserta anak mereka yaitu Horus serta pertempuran Horus dan Set untuk merebut tahta dewa Mesir, plus selama ini gue tahunya Anubis itu putranya Set, ternyata ada kebenaran yang lain. Jadi memang banyak versi mitologi Mesir ini. Selain itu, tiap daerah itu punya dewa - dewi lokal, jadi bisa aja satu nama dewa bisa jadi nama dewa lainnya. Bisa aja nama dewa Ra di Thebes jadi Ptah atau Khnum di kota lain. Makanya, gue cukup respek juga sama Napoli yang berusaha merangkum mitologi Mesir yang sangat kompleks itu menjadi narasi per bagian yang bisa dipahami oleh orang awam. Apalagi di buku ini, ilustrasi Christina Balit melengkapi kisah - kisah di dalamnya. Kita juga diajak mengenali dewa - dewi lain yang mungkin kurang familiar seperti dewi Thefnut dan dewi Nit.
  
  Karena judul buku ini juga menyebut monster dan manusia, maka tidak lengkap tanpa kehadiran monster, yaitu Apep si ular yang menjadi musuh abadi Ra. Apalagi beberapa dewa - dewi juga penampilannya adalah campuran manusia dan hewan, seperti yang terlihat pada Sekhmet, Taweret atau Sobek. Untuk manusia sendiri, Napoli memasukkan Imhotep, sebagai orang yang tergolong maju untuk jamannya. Dimana Imhotep ini adalah orang Mesir yang menemukan konsep bangunan Piramida. Makanya, jadi agak sedih juga ya lihat Imhotep di film The Mummy :'). Karena sebenarnya Imhotep adalah manusia yang sangat pintar, sehingga ribuan setelah akhir hidupnya dia dianggap sebagai dewa juga.
  
  Membaca buku Mitologi Mesir ini tentunya menambah banyak pengetahuan tentang dewa - dewi Mesir, apalagi konsep tritunggal dan 9 dewa yang disebut Pesedjet Agung (atau Ennead). Gue juga baru tahu kalau Horus ternyata ada dua, yang pertama adalah Horus anak Ra sendiri (jadi sodaranya Osiris, Isis, Set dan Nepthys) dan yang kedua adalah Horus yang banyak dikenal sebagai putra Osiris dan Isis. Tak lupa juga ada daftar referensi di beberapa halaman belakang buku yang bisa dicrosscheck atau untuk menambah referensi bacaan. Tentunya narasi Napoli masih kadang lebay, tapi jadi enak dibaca juga karena Napoli menyelipkan beberapa dialog jadi seperti membaca para dewa - dewi berinteraksi.
  
  Dari semua buku - buku mitologi yang dirilis Napoli, gue rekomen buku ini dan juga buku 1001 Malam, karena presentasi bukunya cukup oke baik dari segi deskripsi tiap dewa-dewi dan juga ilustrasi yang menyertai. Yang jelas kalau suka mitologi, buku2nya Napoli itu wajib banget dikoleksi deh!
• 
  Mila

  I really enjoyed
  Donna Jo Napoli
  Treasury of Greek Mythology: Classic Stories of Gods, Goddesses, Heroes & Monsters and this one on Egypt was just as good. The art by Christina Balit was just as stunning. I'm impressed at the amount of research that must have gone into this book which spans literally thousands of years. This adds up to thousands of stories to be interpreted.
  
  I'm glad that "when the Greeks invaded, they recorded myths using their alphabet." I guess that was the least they could do (besides leaving us the Rosetta Stone). Interestingly Egyptians liked the number nine as did the Greeks. Perhaps the Greeks "borrowed" this from them. They liked the magic square of 9. They added 2 colours (gold and silver) to the rainbow of seven (I think so that it would add up to nine). Napoli has also provided the Greek name for the Egyptian gods - I put it in brackets.
  
  Because they were characters in
  American Gods I especially liked the stories about Inpu (Anubis) God of Mummification and Tehuti (Thoth) God of Knowledge.
  
  My favourite goddess is Bastet (Bast) Cat Goddess. "She was worshipped as a protector against evil spirits and diseases. But she was also simply a kitty."
  
  And then there's Imhotep who is actually a real human who figured out how to build the pyramids. This occurred in the 3rd Dynasty around 2575 BC. Imhotep was recognized as a god 2000 years later. I like the way Napoli ends her book:

  Imhotep embodied the best of ancient Egypt's sensibilities: interest in the divine combined with attention to the needs of body, mind, and spirit on earth.
• 
  Книжни Криле

  Ето, че достигнахме и до четвъртата и най-мистична книга от митологичната серия на „National Geographic” и „Егмонт България” – тази, посветена на Древен Египет. Дона Джо Наполи и Кристина Балит разчитат на вече познатата ни и отлично работеща формула, съчетаваща легендарното с историческото и приказното с научното. „Вечната египетска митология: Класически истории за богове, богини, герои и чудовища” е омагьосваща книга, която ще ви запознае с фолклора и традициите на една обгърната в тайнственост антична цивилизация. Прочетете ревюто на "Книжни Криле":
  https://knijnikrile.wordpress.com/201...
• 
  Linniegayl

  This was really a lovely book, filled with origin stories of most of the major Egyptian gods and godesses. I was slightly confused at times because I didn't realize there were the "Greek" names for gods and the Egyptian names, and the author uses the Egyptian names. Fortunately, she also provides the Greek names for most (which is what I learned) as well as having a section at the end that rounds them all up.
  
  
• 
  Katie

  I listened to this book in audio form with my children who are eight and nine. We would listen to It's on long car rides to visit Grandma a few hours away. (pre-Pandemic!)
  
  I really loved how the author presented this Egyptian mythology in a way that anyone can understand. The stories were so enthralling.
  
  At many times throughout this book I envisioned myself sitting on a teacher's floor while she read aloud.
• 
  Sonja

  It seems a little scattered. Maybe better for a class or a younger reader.
• 
  isabelle

  this is everything i love about mythology and also this author is so cool a math AND linguistics major??? i wish it was me
• 
  Briynne

  Beautiful illustrations. The kids and I liked this, but the consensus seemed to be that the Greek stories were a little more fun.
• 
  Maris

  Not a lengthy book, but I certainly took my time perusing it. We’re obviously missing a lot of details when it comes to ancient Egyptian mythology, but I thought this book did a great job in presenting what stories and information we know about the deities and tales that have been passed down. A well-organized, approachable reference for the novice Egyptian enthusiast.
• 
  ✨THAT'S WHAT SHE READ✨

  I loved it so much
  And it's very disappointing for me as an egyptian to say that i knew nothing about like....95% of this book😂💔
  And i'm not really sure why but i always had the impression that egyptian mythology was quite boring (and that changed thanks to moon knight)
  So i was really happy to learn more
  And will absolutly look for more books about egyptian mythology....because it's very far from being boring!
• 
  Barb

  I love how they put it into stories
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  Phantomº

  Even if this is meant for children/young students it helped me get a small glance of the egyptian mythology I knew a little about.There are not many details but still it helps you understand enough about it.
  The artwork is stunning
• 
  Laurence

  It's for kids, so I'm not the intended audience. I'm looking for a definitive version for adults like Neil Gaiman's Norse Mythology or Stephen Fry's Greek mythology series.
  
  I would have preferred this to have been more story based rather than a chapter per god.
• 
  Honorata

  3,5. Czytało się przyjemnie, zebranych jest wiele ciekawych i istotnych informacji, ale.. no właśnie. Dalej się czuję, jakbym nic o mitologii egipskiej nie wiedziała.
• 
  Elissa

  This is one of a dozen or more books I added to my classroom library, for students to have rich resources to discover Ancient Egyptian civilization. I had the companion edition, Treasury of Greek Mythology, so knew to expect good things. These books do a great job of providing accessible narratives to portray history of the gods/goddesses, with evocative artwork.
• 
  Miriam

  Did I like this book? Yes. Would I recommend this book? Yes. I did have one problem with it, however...
  
  The illustrations are beautiful. I've enjoyed other books she's illustrated as well. But she chose to completely ignore the colors the Egyptians used to portray themselves. With only a couple of exceptions, the characters are all depicted using a northern European palette. Who is the primary exception? Set. This was disappointing, especially after expecting something different after seeing the cover on display at the library.
  
  Please stop white-washing Egypt.
• 
  Stuart

  The BEST book of Egyptian Mythology for children I have yet to come across, Napoli's prose is clear and brisk, efficient and poetic at the same time, and she skillfully weaves together the various threads of Egyptian mythology into something both mystical and coherent, creating a more human and nuanced look at these distant and magical figures than we usually get. And the illustrations are knock-out fantastic, and worth the price of the book alone.
• 
  Caitlyn

  I reread this recently because I enjoyed it so much the first time that I bought a copy. Yeah, it's probably for children, it is a giant picture book, but the art is great and the stories are concise and digestible and it's just an overall delight to the senses to sit in bed at night and read a story out of my giant mythology book. I unapologetically recommend this.
• 
  Erin

  Cute book...but had to return to the library...will try to pick it back up later. This is an intermediate kids book...I gotta say the gods being white kinda irked me a bit...just because it doesnt make sense....but other than that it is an informative book with great illustrations.
• 
  Shalene

  Beautiful artwork throughout. Tells stories of Egypt, but only one version. There are so many out there that I wouldn't take this at face value - consider it simply one version of many stories. Good for a fun read, but not if you're really wanting to learn about Egyptian mythology.
• 
  Ryan

  I'd like to listen to a great book on Egyptian mythology, but this really wasn't it. Maybe 3.5 stars, but it was kind of at the uncanny valley of not enough information to be interesting but also not presented in a particularly engaging way.