No one does a "pop - up book" better than Robert Sabuda.
An Egyptian fan for a long time, this book was a perfect gift
for myself. Spent literally hours with it !

If I could give this book zero stars I would. This book came highly recommended as a great way to introduce Egyptian History to children. I was stunned to read the book only to find it was horridly inaccurate! While I realize this is supposed to be historical fiction, at least some attempt at historical accuracy should have been attempted. Not every parent has an interest or knowledge of Egyptian History so many wouldn't notice, but since this book is reccomended by at least two homeschool curricula, and parents expect the authors of those curricula to have at least passing knowledge of the history they are teaching, I think fair warning is needed.

According to this book, Tutankhamen was the son of Amenhotep III.
Amenhotep III was actually Tutankhamen's grandfather. Tutankhamen was the son of Amenhotep IV, Akhenaten. Not Amenhotep IV's younger brother as portrayed in the book. Also, Akhenaten didn't die after a short time as Pharaoh, he ruled for at least 17 years. About the only thing the book got correct was that Akhenaten did change the religion from poly-theism to mono-theism and that Egypt was returned to poly-theism after Tutankhamen became Pharaoh.

If you are looking to teach your children Egyptian History, and want accurate Egyptian History, skip this one.

I love Robert Sabuda but this boring story and equally boring pop ups are not worthy of his usual high-quality items. It appears to me that this was done to make a quick buck for the holiday seasons.

I love Robert Sabuda but this boring story and equally boring pop ups are not worthy of his usual high-quality items. It appears to me that this was done to make a quick buck for the holiday seasons.

I love Robert Sabuda's work and this is no exception! The problem with trying to interest young children in ancient history is that little is written in biographical fashion for young readers. Apart from encyclopedia or fact books, there are few good books on the ancient civilisations. It is therefore refreshing that Sabuda has put together this story about a boy king. It is made even more gorgeous by the artwork which painstakingly recreates the art of that great civilisation on papyrus-like backgrounds. Check out also Saint Valentine by the same author.

As to a reviewer's comment that Amazon should make it clear that this is not a pop-up book, I would have thought that the price tag (at 6.99) and the fact that it is a paperback book should have made this self-evident! That's not reason enough to bring down this book's rating!

I was disappointed that this book was not a pop-up as Robert Sabuda books are usually. The book was too old for a 5 year old but would have been fine if it was a pop-up. The seller's need to make that clear that is not a pop-up.

The book opens when Tutankhamen was a very young and sickly child. The author explains that this youngest son attended school but was unable to participate in very physical games due to his fragility. While Tut walked to his school he admired the temples, appreciated the fine art work which glorified the numerous Egyptian Gods and his spirituality grew. In the beginning of the story, his father, Amenhotep III was Pharaoh. Upon the death of his father (which is not really dealt with or discussed enough),Tut's older brother, Amenhotep IV, took over the throne. Under his rule, he banned worship of all God's except for the Sun God. Temples and artwork were destroyed and Tut was upset about this, as it seems was most of Egypt. Soon he was assassinated and Tut took over at the age of 9 or 10. The focus of the story is that Tut then restored the right of the people to worship multiple Gods and work began to restore and rebuild temples to all of the Gods. Tut seems to have been appreciated for this and his gift to the people was this act. The story ends there, with Tut still alive, young, and ruling Egypt.

In the teacher's notes at the end of the book, it states that Tut was killed at the age of 19 or 20 from a severe head injury, which is speculated to be either from a hunting accident or an intentional assignation. So the story does not go as far as his death, but it is mentioned in the endnote.

Since most of what people know of King Tut was of the riches found in his tomb, this book gives a different perspective of the important thing that King Tut did for his people. I think children will enjoy reading of a child King, and they will like the storytelling being in the time frame of before his rule and during his rule.

The artwork is bold and bright. The swirls and bold lines remind me of stained glass windows. There is a lot to look at and the illustrations certainly held our interest.

My 6 year-old son enjoyed this story as an accompaniment to learning about Ancient Egypt. The story about a young boy that became King was a refreshing change from the usual spin and perspective found in most books, which can be dry or portraying Egyptians as just mummies and the idea that Egypt is just desert and pyramids.