It is the year 4022; all of the ancient country of Usa has been buried under many feet of detritus from a catastrophe that occurred back in 1985. I...
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Sep 08, 2011
Alissa
rated it: 
Life as we know it ends in 1985 due to cataclysmic postal office catastrophe which, of course, happened way before the majority of junk mail (now called SPAM) delivery became electronic. More than 2,000 years later, a previously-buried structure (an old motel) is discovered--quite by accident. Its rooms are filled with mysterious treasures we (the people of today) view as commonplace. Read this book to see how 39th century people assume such items were used by people of 1985. Their interpertatio
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Jul 17, 2011
Rachel
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"In 1985 a cataclysmic coincidence of previously unknown proportion extinguished virtually all forms of life on the North American continent." So begins this hilarious and thought-provoking book. Over three thousand years later, at an excavation in ancient Usa, an amazing discovery is made, and humankind finally gets a glimpse at--and begins to understand--the culture of the Yanks of Usa.
The ruins of a motel room are taken for a Yank burial chamber, and the amateur archaeol More...
The ruins of a motel room are taken for a Yank burial chamber, and the amateur archaeol More...
Sep 11, 2011
Emilyn
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I read a number of book related websites to stay up-to-date on what's being published and what is available at MPL. I recently read about Motel of the Mysteries by David Macaulay on one of those websites as an old favorite of a fellow librarian and decided to pick it up.
The year is 4022. The ancient civilization of Usa was buried under mounds of detritus in the year 1985. Amateur archeologist Howard Carson makes the discovery of a lifetime when he inadvertently falls into a tomb buri More...
The year is 4022. The ancient civilization of Usa was buried under mounds of detritus in the year 1985. Amateur archeologist Howard Carson makes the discovery of a lifetime when he inadvertently falls into a tomb buri More...
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Jul 26, 2008
Jan
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This was a good quick read book. It has an interesting point of view. It looks back on our time from the distant future. It shows how many misconceptions there are in history. It makes you think about how many things we think we know that are not true. Very fun to read this book while reading the other book that I just reviewed about Egypt.
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Mar 04, 2008
Granny
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This book cracks me up! In fact, it produced endless moments of hilarity in the early 1980's, when my then teenaged sons and I would read passages aloud and just about roll on the floor! A great spoof and it bears up bravely upon re-reading years later.
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Jan 07, 2010
Ram
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This really could have been better. Great idea - far-future eccentric stumbles upon a 20th century no-tell motel and mistakes it for an essential, religious structure of a bygone civilization. Thus, the TV becomes the "sacred altar," because everything in a motel room faces the TV; the toilet seat is a sacred collar one must wear before shouting, down the hole, to the gods below; etc. But Macaulay wears out the thin premise quickly and doesn't know how to keep good satire away from
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Jul 02, 2009
Megan
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I kept seeing this book mentioned everywhere for some reason, so I finally ILLed it. It’s a short, quick read, and concerns an amateur archaeologist from far in the future, who makes a major archaeological discovery in the ruins of the former nation called Usa and populated by “Yanks.”
Although it does seem to go a bit overboard, it’s still pretty cute and it definitely highlights a lot of concerns that archaeologists and other researchers have to consider when looking at artifacts fr More...
Although it does seem to go a bit overboard, it’s still pretty cute and it definitely highlights a lot of concerns that archaeologists and other researchers have to consider when looking at artifacts fr More...
Apr 20, 2008
Natlyn
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Two thousand years after the fall of North American civilization, a motel is excavated by amateur archaeologists who determine it to be a burial site with all contents having some religious or ritual significance.
Macaulay is known for his architectural and "exploded view" drawings, but here his text creates the whimsical mood that carries the book. Clearly parodying the discovery of King Tut's tomb, the text follows amateur archaelogist Howard Carson's accidental discovery More...
Macaulay is known for his architectural and "exploded view" drawings, but here his text creates the whimsical mood that carries the book. Clearly parodying the discovery of King Tut's tomb, the text follows amateur archaelogist Howard Carson's accidental discovery More...
Nov 24, 2007
Monk
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I can't remember when I got this book, but I was young. It was a stretch to get my folks to get me a copy as a kid - it wasn't really a 'historical' book that they felt would educate me any, but it did do something that stuck with me for all of the intervening years since reading it.
The story is that of an archaeologist who has uncovered a strange chamber in the North American continent in the far future. The 'burial chamber' is not what the archaeologist thinks it is however, as it More...
The story is that of an archaeologist who has uncovered a strange chamber in the North American continent in the far future. The 'burial chamber' is not what the archaeologist thinks it is however, as it More...
Sep 21, 2007
Jennifer
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I attended the premiere of this book at the University of Pennsylvania many, many years ago due to my parent's donations to the local public television station. As I was in junior high school at the time, I failed to appreciate this work in all its subtle humour and glory, but having since studied anthropology and sociology at the University level, I realise how great this book really is.
The general plot line of this book is that due to a decrease in the charge to mail fourth-class More...
The general plot line of this book is that due to a decrease in the charge to mail fourth-class More...
Sep 06, 2007
Tracey
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For fun last night, I re-read Motel of the Mysteries by David Macaulay. (Didn't take long - it's only about 100 pages, at least half of which are illustrations.) Long before he was teaching us about The Way Things Work - Macaulay was subtly skewering pop culture.
A parody of the Egyptology of the late 19th/early 20th century, this short book posits that in 1985, North America was inundated with a flood of junk mail and condensed smog that buried the continent. Roughly two centuries l More...
A parody of the Egyptology of the late 19th/early 20th century, this short book posits that in 1985, North America was inundated with a flood of junk mail and condensed smog that buried the continent. Roughly two centuries l More...
Nov 02, 2011
Marilyn
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My library shelves this as a Young Adult book, but it's definitely a hoot for anyone with any sense of humor (you can finish it in an hour or less). Thanks, Sharon, for recommending it. 2,000 years after a tragic postal accident, an archeologist stumbles across a buried treasure trove. His interpretation of what he finds is more than just funny...it makes you think about our own interpretation of ancient ruins as well as how we use materials today.
Nov 06, 2010
Julia
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It's really hard to describe this book. The book documents an archaelogical expedition excavating a generic cheap hotel. If you love documentaries showing you "Secrets of Egyptian Tombs" and such, you'll think this is hilarious. The archaeologist's analysis of the contents of the hotel room, and what the artificats are (a toilet seat thought to be a ceremonial object meant to be worn). Utterly hliarious.
Feb 01, 2011
Child960801
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I enjoyed this book. It makes fun of Egyptologists and their pronouncements of what ancient life must have been like based on what is dug up. The book mocks one in particular, Howard Carter, the discoverer of King Tutankhamun's tomb. This is very clear because the main character in the book is Howard Carson and several of the pictures mirror famous images of Carter from his dig.
Mar 10, 2011
Tessa
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Because am an adult and an overthinker, I wish I could have bought into the total naivete of the future explorers, since they basically look like British people from the '30s and probably use toilets themselves. But when I was able to suspend my overanalytical crust, I heartily enjoyed this book and its superb drawings by the master cross-hatcher David Macaulay.
Sep 13, 2011
Jennifer
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For the most part, this offers a clever look at what earth's future residents might believe when they dig up what we've left behind. The presentation, mimicking Howard Carter's discovery of Tut's tomb, is cheeky, but the premise does wear thin a little. The idea of the TV as altar is not far off (this book was written before the advent of the Internet).
Apr 12, 2010
Kathy
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You are most likely to find this book in the children's book section, but it is absolutely hilarious for adults too.
The premise of the book is that some time around 2000 years or so in the future USA, an archeologist stumbles upon the find of a lifetime, a 1980's era motel that has been perfectly preserved under tons of junk mail! A classic!
The premise of the book is that some time around 2000 years or so in the future USA, an archeologist stumbles upon the find of a lifetime, a 1980's era motel that has been perfectly preserved under tons of junk mail! A classic!
Feb 05, 2012
Stephanie
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This book was written in 1979 at the time the King Tut exibits were making the rounds in the US. The book was a short great fun read. In saying that it was also thought prevoking in saying that what we have taken from the past might be all wrong. At only 95 pages it is well worth a quick read for anyone intrested in archaeology.
Jan 30, 2012
Andre
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Wow, this book made me feel stupid and ashamed of society. It is funny and intelligent, and it got me thinking if the work archeologists do is really valuable. What if they got it all wrong? What if life back in ancient times was actually quite simple, and history makes it complicated because that is what dumb people supposed first?
Jul 09, 2011
Jordan
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This book was one of the more genius things I've read. One has to wonder about these things... How many historians would be embarrassed to speak to the real historical figures? Probably most. The book is written seriously, which makes it all the more funny. The illustrations and writing style all fit the idea perfectly.
Nov 28, 2010
Mmyoung
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A light, enjoyable and well illustrated book that can be enjoyed on two levels. For children and young adults it is just a fun story. For adults who are aware of the history of archeology and cultural anthropology the text and illustrations carry secondary amusing insights and references.
Nov 14, 2011
Diana
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What a hoot. I rarely laugh out loud when I read but this one did make me giggle. A motel is uncovered by an archeologist in the future and the items found were given religious, ceremonial uses. It had shades of Egyptian discoveries of the past. A fun, less-than-an-hour read.
Sep 11, 2010
Kay
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One of the pride and joys of my collection of illustrated books. I had it signed by David Macaulay at the National Book Festival a couple of years ago. Briefly, this book is a spoof on archeology, with specific reference to Howard Carter's discover of the tomb of King Tut. In the distant future (41st century), a cheap hotel room is discovered, still intact, and the archaeologists, full of wonder, examine the "treasures" - such as the "sanitized for your protection" paper sl
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Jul 26, 2011
Michelle
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This was probably my first introduction to satire back in the day. The target is archaeologists, and whether they can truly divine the meanings of artifacts in an "ancient" culture without forcing it through the lenses of today. How they interpret the toilet is my favorite part!
Sep 08, 2009
Loree
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Often people think they've identified what they've found or what they're dealing with but they are fully erroneous and go on their merry way. This story takes a turn that I enjoy very much.
Dramatic discoveries and misidentification! A must read - entertaining.
Dramatic discoveries and misidentification! A must read - entertaining.
Jan 03, 2012
Terry
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Read this a long time ago, and it has followed me to college and into middle age. The illustrations are great, and the central conceit is clever. Not laugh-out-loud funny, but clever and ironic and probably good for the right off-beat reader.
Nov 03, 2010
Bonnie
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If you know anything about archaeology, specifically the discovery of King Tut's tomb, this is a hilarious send-up of archaeologists and those who try to make sense of the past. The part about the "sacred toilet" is my favorite.
Sep 25, 2009
Kate
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Okay, I read this years and years ago and it made me laugh so hard - the parallels to ancient egyptian archaeology should be fairly obvious, and it gives a good warning: don't assume. I'd most definitely recommend this one!
Sep 16, 2008
Julie H.
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This book is an extremely clever send up of exhibit catalogues, of the pretentiousness of (over)interpretation of archaeological and other culture's materials, and a thoroughly enjoyable read. The basic premise is that the world as we know it has been buried, Vesuvius-like, under a deluge of bulk mail. Fast forward to the year 4022 and enjoy the hilarious tongue-in-cheek interpretation of these discoveries. My personal favorite has got to be the "sacred collar and matching hairband"
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May 12, 2009
Leanne
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This is an odd one, folks. Highly creative, very funny, worth reading even if you don't work with kids. I'll definitely be using it with my students during our creativity unit.
