"Robert L. Tignor's ambitious Egypt: A Short History stretches from the Predynastic age to the present, tying the various periods together in a continuous 5,000-year narrative to create a lengthy history told in a short book... Tignor writes with an easy, assured style, and his history becomes more focused and more authoritative as it progresses. He tells us it was ... Read moreconceived as an alternative guidebook for discerning tourists wishing to learn about more than just pyramids and pharaohs: as such
as an enjoyable book written by someone who clearly knows and loves Egypt and the Egyptians
it serves its purpose very well."
Financial Times "[T]horough, engaging, and accessible... Concise and yet engagingly vivid, this outstanding little book should be enjoyed by any reader interested in Egypt or Middle Eastern history."
Joan W. Gartland, Library Journal "Ambitious in scope, Egypt: A Short History provides an informative and readable account for the interested general reader."
Anthony Gorman, Times Higher Education "[O]ne could not write a better account of Egypt's history
a gift from a master historian at the conclusion of his career."
Henry E. Chambers, Middle East Journal "If you love Egypt, then this book is an excellent introduction to its multi-faceted history and culture."
Ancient Egypt "Senior history Tignor presents an elegant yet accessible survey that carries readers from predynastic times to the present. Illustrated with 25 color plates, two maps, and six figures, this work aims to please the sophisticated reader whose objective is to learn the broad contours of Egyptian political, economic, and religious history... [S]tudents, tourists, travelers, and businesspersons alike will find this a useful text."
Choice "[An] excellent summation of the flow of Egyptian history."
Morris L. Bierbrier, Egyptian Archaeology "Tignor's book has arrived on bookshelves at a most fortuitous time, when the number of ... general readers seeking information about Egypt is greatly enlarged, given the extensive media coverage of the 'Arab spring' of 2011. In Egypt: A Short History, this audience will find an invaluable guide to the impulses that have stirred Egyptians in both the recent and the distant past."
Paul Sedra, Journal of World History "Clear prose, personal vignettes from his own travels to Egypt, perspectives and scenes familiar to any tourist in Cairo and Alexandria, and fine scholarship are all brought together in a book that could easily become a reference title for future generations, a title to be consulted by all those wishing to travel to that magical land."
Lavinia Stan, European Legacy Show Less