Gift Of The Nile - Pbk
Grade 1-3-- Based upon an ancient hieroglyph, this folktale tells of the Pharoah Senefru and the young woman, Mutemwia, who is given to him by her father as a gift. Wise, talented, and forthright, she soon becomes the Pharoah's special confidante. But when she confesses her homesickness to him, he imprisons her. Soon he, too, loses interest in life, and asks his magician for help. In the end, Mutemwia is granted her freedom, but she remains Senefru's truest friend. Mike's retelling is vivid in places, but stilted language and a choppy style reduce its power and appeal. The story itself goes in too many directions to build effectively. Although there is some explanatory material on the last page, there is no pronunciation guide. The characters in Reasoner's illustrations don't have mouths. If this is a characteristic of hieroglyphs, an explanation, or at least a reproduction of a hieroglyph of a human (other objects are offered on the last page) would be useful. Problems with color reproduction give the characters inconsistent skin tones. While the illustrations pick up many of the motifs of the hieroglyphs, as well as pyramids first built by Senefru, both the visuals and the text are, at best, average. --Lyn Miller-Lachmann, Siena College Library, Loudonville, NYCopyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.