hypatiasilver's review against another edition
The history felt superficial and the feminism was the annoying side of gender essentialism
readingwithcoffee's review against another edition
It was very bad and thought former Secretary of a state Hilary Clinton who admires war criminal Kissinger was less militant then male politicians for seemingly some either intentional or accidental bioesstentialism and introduction framed Margaret thatcher and Teresa May two Tory Prime Ministers of the United Kingdom as overly criticized when Thatcher was no friend to feminism and A violent conservative war hawk horrible to women of color. This felt even more compounded by the only other woman mentioned being Elizabeth Warren who has lied about being Cherokee and has been criticized by Cherokee women for years before her attempt at the presidency. This erasure of these women’s harm to people of color but especially women of color in their countries and aboard spoke of racist bias that while Egyptians of this time wouldn’t fit neatly into todays concepts of race or ethnicity in the region (given that Arab is not the ethnic groups that exist the region before even considering Cleopatra and her dynasty being Greek not Egyptian ethnic wise) shows such a lack of lens that made the books attempt at gender studies shallow and flat and what could have easily been a middling essay then a history book that’s mostly blanket statements making far too general statements about understanding of gender and it’s performance in different regions and times
danicapage's review against another edition
medium-paced
3.5
I have enjoyed Kara Cooney’s books in the past. She is such an insightful and relatable historian who focuses on women’s history, often forgotten history. If you want to learn about women in ancient Egypt (and particularly powerful women in Ancient Egypt), check her out. I'd highly recommend you do so on audio. Sometimes, historical nonfiction can be quite dry and dense, but Kara does a great job of keeping it entertaining and also informative. Egyptology is always speculative, but I thought this lacked the historical weight of some of her other books, which is why I rated it lower. She was trying to relate it to the present political situation, but I felt it led to more speculation in the book.
There was less support for some of her claims here than in some of her other books, and some things felt like they were too generic or stereotypical.
On the whole, I enjoyed it though. Listen on audio, however. Much more digestible that way is my take.
There was less support for some of her claims here than in some of her other books, and some things felt like they were too generic or stereotypical.
On the whole, I enjoyed it though. Listen on audio, however. Much more digestible that way is my take.
ailurophile_bibliophile89's review against another edition
3.0
3 STARS
Fun Fact: I actually bought the audiobook version of When Women Ruled the World: Six Queens of Egypt about a year ago and tried to listen to it, but at the time I had a really hard time paying attention to all audiobooks, so I just kind of shoved it to the side.
So anyway, I was in Barnes & Noble a couple weeks ago and saw this book on a shelf and a biography about Napoleon on another shelf. Women won that debate for the pure reason that it was $5 cheaper than the latter.
Well written, interesting, and certainly easy to read, it wasn't quite what I expected. I thought the chapters would be longer and more in-depth – although in all fairness given the time period of the subjects, it can be expected that there's not a whole lot of material to go off of. Still, Hatshepsut I had heard of, although I knew very little of her reign, and of course everyone knows of Cleopatra, so it was certainly a pleasure to discover new Queens of Egypt.
Yet, the chapters seemed too fast-paced and it seems like the most extensive chapters were given to two of the most well-known queens. An unfortunate happenstance, yet – again – understandable given the material.
I will add that I appreciate Cooney's take on women, politics, and society. I found myself agreeing with her opinions as they align so closely to my own. She comes across forceful and is clearly not a fan of Trump - which I also cannot blame her for. Forcefulness in a woman, as Cooney had stated on several different occasions, is so frequently deemed as unattractive, however I found her take rather refreshing, to be honest.
But still, as a word to the wise, for anyone unfamiliar with Egyptian history and its queens – myself included, although I have an extensive knowledge of Cleopatra for someone who has yet to read an official biography of her – it will certainly do. However, for any learned Egyptologist, it will probably disappoint.
Fun Fact: I actually bought the audiobook version of When Women Ruled the World: Six Queens of Egypt about a year ago and tried to listen to it, but at the time I had a really hard time paying attention to all audiobooks, so I just kind of shoved it to the side.
So anyway, I was in Barnes & Noble a couple weeks ago and saw this book on a shelf and a biography about Napoleon on another shelf. Women won that debate for the pure reason that it was $5 cheaper than the latter.
Well written, interesting, and certainly easy to read, it wasn't quite what I expected. I thought the chapters would be longer and more in-depth – although in all fairness given the time period of the subjects, it can be expected that there's not a whole lot of material to go off of. Still, Hatshepsut I had heard of, although I knew very little of her reign, and of course everyone knows of Cleopatra, so it was certainly a pleasure to discover new Queens of Egypt.
Yet, the chapters seemed too fast-paced and it seems like the most extensive chapters were given to two of the most well-known queens. An unfortunate happenstance, yet – again – understandable given the material.
I will add that I appreciate Cooney's take on women, politics, and society. I found myself agreeing with her opinions as they align so closely to my own. She comes across forceful and is clearly not a fan of Trump - which I also cannot blame her for. Forcefulness in a woman, as Cooney had stated on several different occasions, is so frequently deemed as unattractive, however I found her take rather refreshing, to be honest.
But still, as a word to the wise, for anyone unfamiliar with Egyptian history and its queens – myself included, although I have an extensive knowledge of Cleopatra for someone who has yet to read an official biography of her – it will certainly do. However, for any learned Egyptologist, it will probably disappoint.
emcdonnell's review against another edition
3.0
This book was good in that I do feel I have learned a lot about the female rulers of Egypt as well as the history of the Egyptian dynasty in general. The author wrote in a way that was accurate and compelling, which kept me from falling asleep like I would when reading school history books.
However, this book is extremely problematic in that it shoves feminism down your throat while simultaneously being extremely sexist in the assumptions about it makes about women (and mens opinions of them!) Additionally, the random political jargon and commentary regarding current politicians was unnecessary and distracting from the content. In attempting to be witty and relatable, the author just managed to piss me off by expressing unrelated opinions on hot button politicians.
However, this book is extremely problematic in that it shoves feminism down your throat while simultaneously being extremely sexist in the assumptions about it makes about women (and mens opinions of them!) Additionally, the random political jargon and commentary regarding current politicians was unnecessary and distracting from the content. In attempting to be witty and relatable, the author just managed to piss me off by expressing unrelated opinions on hot button politicians.
ela_lee_'s review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars rounded down to 3. Unlike most of these comments, I think this book was well-written and I appreciated the references to modern day history. (Isn’t the beauty of a historian how they prove the relation between past and present?) I just wouldn’t say I’m particularly interested in Ancient Egyptian culture. I also feel like this book was a little difficult to follow at times; I probably should have read Ancient Egypt 101 first.
Overall, an interesting read proving how woman have constantly been erased from history and are usually more capable of assisting their communities in stressful times of need. I mean, where’s the lie? Men have been irrationally destroying countries and murdering citizens for thousands of years, yet the majority of the population still claims WOMEN are too emotional to rule the world.
I enjoyed the concept of this book (and now see why Cleopatra is so famous.) Just not really my preferred time period of interest.
Overall, an interesting read proving how woman have constantly been erased from history and are usually more capable of assisting their communities in stressful times of need. I mean, where’s the lie? Men have been irrationally destroying countries and murdering citizens for thousands of years, yet the majority of the population still claims WOMEN are too emotional to rule the world.
I enjoyed the concept of this book (and now see why Cleopatra is so famous.) Just not really my preferred time period of interest.