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5th out of 100 books
—
48 voters
Amelia Peabody's Egypt
The Egypt that so enticed and enchanted intrepid archaeologist-sleuth Amelia Peabody in the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries was a place of wonder, mystery, danger, and the lure of antiquity. Now, with this monumental volume of Egyptian culture, history, and arcania, readers will be able to immerse themselves in the great lady's world more completely than ever befor...more
329 pages
Published
(first published 2003)
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Between visiting Egypt in the last couple of years and reading Nefertiti a few months ago, I’ve become quite interested in all things Egypt. I’ve enjoyed the Amelia Peabody series, so I thought this would be fun. It’s what I would consider to be slightly fictionalized non-fiction, as the Emersons are inserted into a quite real history. Some parts were more readable than others, and the ones I enjoyed most were A Splendid Overview of Egyptoloy: Napoleon to World War I; A Commanding Prospective: T...more
Jan 16, 2012
Librarianforhim
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Fans of the Amelia Peabody mysteries.
Premise: The book provides a background into the culture during which the fictional character Amelia Peabody lived and worked with her husband Emerson in Egypt. This book, geared toward fans of the Amelia Peabody mysteries, contains several essays and illustrations that bring to life Amelia's world, both in Egypt and England.
Why I picked it up: With only one more Amelia Peabody mystery to go, I thought it would be fun to have a little more background on the people, events, and culture described...more
Why I picked it up: With only one more Amelia Peabody mystery to go, I thought it would be fun to have a little more background on the people, events, and culture described...more
Amelia Peabody's Egypt. A Compendium. Edited by Elizabeth Peters. 2003. The concept of fiction set in a historical context has always received a certain appeal. Elizabeth Peters takes the genre to the next level by inserting her fictionalized characters into what would others wise be a highly accurate, non fiction historical work. The various contributors to the book paint an accurate portrayal of what life was like for a Victorian woman, living in colonial Egypt at the turn of the last century....more
Apr 18, 2010
Kris
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
fans of Elizabeth Peters' books
Shelves:
own-it
For any fan of Elizabeth Peters' Amelia Peabody series, this is a wonderful compendium. It's part factual history of Egypt combined with the characters of the books. There are pictures and short bios of the characters, listed alongpt with actual historical figures. Many of the historical events that take place during the novels are detailed here, enabling the reader of the series to get a greater sense of the culture and political events of the time. It has certainly helped me to get a deeper en...more
I love the Amelia Peabody series, and so like any true fan, I immediately picked this up when I saw it. It is full of great black and white photos, illustrations, glossaries, maps, bibliographies, a reader's digest style version of the Egyptian history that acts as a backdrop for the Emerson's excavations, selections of famous 'Amelia' quotes, and even several pages from Emerson's journal from when he met Amelia up until the shortly before the final encounter with the 'mummy'. Absolutely great,...more
Re-read. Since I adore the setting of the Amelia Peabody series, Victorian/Edwardian Egyptology, this was very enjoyable. Brief essays, photos and engravings, and encyclopedia-like sections give background knowledge on Egypt, British Imperialism, and even our Heroes and Heroines who are cleverly inserted into the text. I love that Peters rooted the series in time because it makes the action much richer, and I'm amazed at how much she used this kind of information to enrich the books. Although th...more
Here is all you'd want to know - and then some - about Amelia Peabody Emerson, her Victorian life, and the Egypt she and her husband dug around for decades. I've read a few of Peters' mysteries and found that Amelia is best in small doses. But I do appreciate the background conjured up from a very real time and place by Peters, a background more fully explored in this compendium of articles by various writers of a range of special interests and illustrated with etchings and contemporaneous photo...more
This book creates humor in the spaces between its play on real Egyptian history, archeology, women's studies, historiography, and the fake history of Amelia Peabody (a character from Elizabeth Peters mystery series).
Some of the humor is subtle but it gets me every time. It is so easy to get caught up in the worlds Peters makes. Her Amelia Peabody books certainly will bring out the geek in every reader.
Some of the humor is subtle but it gets me every time. It is so easy to get caught up in the worlds Peters makes. Her Amelia Peabody books certainly will bring out the geek in every reader.
This is a fun juxtaposition between the Amelia Peabody series, and the reality of what life in Egypt was like during the historical period in which Amelia's stories are set. If you are an amateur anthropologist, or just find that period of Egypt's history interesting, you will find fascinating tidbits in this book.
Things like what clothing people wore, how people interacted, that sort of thing.
Things like what clothing people wore, how people interacted, that sort of thing.
Book book full of fact and fiction. It was interesting to read the background behind the Amelia Peabody books, but I would wait to read it if you haven't finished the series yet. It definitely had spoilers. I listed it as non-fiction, but it crosses over to fiction as it tries to place Amelia in real life.
I loved the detail that went into this. And it's a fun narrative style while being historically informational. I like it. You can tell that she weaves her characters into history, and that makes it super fun. Reading this made me wish they were all real. Again. I wish it every time I read the books. :)
Picked this up again as I listened to the Golden One on cd. A perfect companion to the books with illustrations I go back to again and again. The writing is pure delight and covers a wealth of topics. The cherry on the cake for Amelia fans.
I read a lot of non-fiction -- medical journals, mostly -- but I can't say I find pleasure in that kind of reading. This is a companion volume to the Amelia Peabody series, and is comprised of a series of chapters written mostly by other people, all of whom love Egypt and love the Amelia series. Besides being highly informative, it was highly entertaining. Like a little game of hide and seek, references to the fictional Peabody clan kept popping up among all the historical information.
Some day,...more
Some day,...more
I love this book. Not only does it give more detail of the world of Amelia Peabody but it is peppered with facts that will make you want to find out more about Egypt and turn of the century Britain.
This is a real life history of the some of the characters you meet in Elizabeth Peters's Amelia Peabody books. It is a big book; almost the size of a coffee table book.
As an Amelia Peabody fan, I give this book 5 stars but as a non-fiction book only 3. It's wonderful to look through and the book gives the reader an idealized vision of those days when archeology was considered an adventure instead of a science. There are plenty of illustrations and photos of Egypt during the turn of the century but the factual information that is given is often times clouded with "jounal entries" from the fictitious Emerson and Amelia.
Speaking from the point of view as an Eliza...more
Speaking from the point of view as an Eliza...more
This is a companion to the series. Much info about Egypt and customs during the time the stories take place. Also provides character and place references.
Aug 02, 2012
Dianne
added it
I read all all of the Amelia Peabody books after having knee replacement surgery, strarted with one and went straight through the series.....loved them.
Sep 30, 2010
Dana
is currently reading it
Ok, if you haven't read this book... you're missing some tiny gems. Part of Emerson's journal is reprinted herein, and other tasty tidbits.
This companion book about the real life people behind the Amelia Peabody series gives a lot of perspective. I found it very useful.
This book was a definite must-have for my Amelia Peabody collection. I particularly love the illustrations and old photos. :)
Apr 02, 2011
Joanna Jacob
marked it as to-read
reading this for the seasonal reading challenge: favorite author (bill bryson) - fan Tracey Stewart - one of her 5 star books.
Barbara Mertz / Elizabeth Peters / Barbara Michaels (and yes there are articles by all three) and her closest circle of kith and kin collaborated on a folio about the history of Egypt and Egyptology, inserting the Emersons and other fictional people / places.
Basically, a picturebook review of Amelia's "life." Interesting companion to the series.
Amelia Peabody's Egypt: A Compendium by Elizabeth Peters (2003)
Hard to tell the real from the manufactured. The joke gets old.
(3.5 stars) A nice primer for the history of egyptology and a lovely compendium of all things Peabody. I would have loved even more chapters on ancient Egyptian history and daily life, though I admit any more than a brief overview would not be relevant to the Peabody mysteries. I appreciate the selected sources in the back so I can delve further into some of the topics introduced in the essays.
What great fun to see actual photos of Egypt at the time of Amelia Peabody stories! I must admit that seeing photos of the characters did not match with my visual ideas of them. But, I realize that the pictures show what actual people looked and dressed like in the time period.
I love the context. I love seeing the actual archaeologists mixed in the with fictional ones. I enjoy reading this book whenever I read the books.
I love the context. I love seeing the actual archaeologists mixed in the with fictional ones. I enjoy reading this book whenever I read the books.
Amelia Peabody has become so real to me that I no longer can tell where fact stops and fiction starts, and this book was no help at all in that regard. If anything, it made the Emersons seem less fictional than ever! Still, it was a great help in bringing together a wealth of Egyptology information in a more understandable way than getting it bit by bit in the novels, so it's well worth the read.
I loved this! I'm a major fan of the Amelia Peabody series. But not only that, it was a compendium about Egypt! My favourite place in the world.
It covers the fashion, culture, art and history of Egypt, as well as giving snippets of behind the scenes photos and events in the Amelia Peabody series, as well as an A-Z of characters in the series. Well worth it if you're a fan.
It covers the fashion, culture, art and history of Egypt, as well as giving snippets of behind the scenes photos and events in the Amelia Peabody series, as well as an A-Z of characters in the series. Well worth it if you're a fan.
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Elizabeth Peters is a pen name of Barbara Mertz. She also writes as Barbara Michaels as well as her own name. Born and brought up in Illinois, she earned her Ph.D. in Egyptology from the University of Chicago. Mertz was named Grand Master at the inaugural Anthony Awards in 1986 and Grand Master by the Mystery Writers of America at the Edgar Awards in 1998. She lives in a historic farmhouse in Fred...more
More about Elizabeth Peters...
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