Review by Booklist Review
Gr. 5^-8. In a new entry in the Royal Diaries series, Cleopatra, age 12, writes in her diary about the events of her daily life, which are far from mundane. She discusses the attempts on her father's life, her pet leopard, her trip to see the lighthouse at Pharos (one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World), and her exile when her elder sister usurps the throne. Her exotic life also includes some horrifying events (her sister's head is brought in on a platter), and Gregory has clearly done her research, inserting many interesting bits of historical lore. Of course, the story is never truly believable--unless you can imagine young Cleopatra writing such lines on her papyrus as "I, Cleopatra, Princess of the Nile." But Gregory writes evocatively, and she provides a good deal of helpful background information at the end of the book. --Susan Dove Lempke
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 4-8-Princess Cleopatra narrates major episodes from her life in a diary she keeps from age 12 to 14. She is sympathetically depicted as a delightful mixture of adolescent uncertainty and as a young woman with great maturity and insight. Born into a royal household full of intrigue and fears of assassination, she desperately wants to survive to become a responsible and just queen. She describes everyday life in the Egyptian court and her frantic flight to Rome with her father, Ptolemy XII, to seek refuge and alliance with the Romans against their enemies and her sisters, who both seek the throne. Characters are well drawn, Cleopatra's relationships with others are realistically portrayed, and historical background is well integrated into the text. This is an enjoyable story, followed by a synopsis of the queen's later years, a time line, family tree, and black-and-white reproductions of old engravings and paintings.-Cynthia M. Sturgis, Ledding Library, Milwaukee, OR (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
Despite occasionally breathless prose, this is nonetheless an engaging fictionalized account of twelve-year-old Cleopatra, as she awaits not only her fate but that of Egypt as well. Readers will need patience to keep track of names and events, but the book provides a clear picture of life in ancient Egypt and Rome. A historical note, reproductions, and maps are appended. From HORN BOOK Spring 2000, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Through compelling journal entries, this entry in The Royal Diaries series takes readers back to a time in ancient Egypt when Cleopatra was a 12-year-old princess, traveling to Rome to meet the likes of Caesar, Cicero, and Marc Antony for the first time. Gregory imagines how the intelligent, literate princess might record events both large and small, proposing that even at such a young age, Cleopatra struggled to learn diplomacy. The attention to detail draws readers headlong into ancient Egypt, describing with immediacy and vigor the spices, views, tastes, and smells that a young Cleopatra may have encountered. An epilogue, family tree, historical notes, and numerous black-and-white illustrations fill in the rest of her story. (Fiction. 8-12)
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
