Tutankhamun

The unmistakable designs and opulent glitter of ancient Egyptian art gleam on every page of Demi's picture-book introduction to Tutankhamun. Beginning with King Tut's great-grandfather, Demi presents the broad historical context surrounding the young monarch's reign, with particular emphasis on the feud between Tut's two most powerful advisors. Demi's language, organized into brief but pithy paragraphs, is clear, but many young readers will still need help grasping the complex political machinations, which may interest them less than the details of the young king's education and rule. It's the beautiful illustrations that will attract and hold a young audience most, and as usual, Demi incorporates artistic motifs and materials appropriate to her subject. Here, working in Egyptian and Chinese inks, she creates elegant borders of glyphlike patterns surrounding uncluttered, stylized scenes of figures drawn straight from ancient Egyptian art, all set against light, linen-textured backgrounds. A family tree, map, and author's note add more heft to this gilded, handsome biography of a subject whose popularity only grows greater 3,000 years after his birth.--Engberg, Gillian Copyright 2009 Booklist

Gr 4-7-Luxuriously detailed, brilliantly colored, and drenched with gold, Demi's biography of the "boy king of Egypt" is, unfortunately, easier to look at than it is to read. Palace intrigue, violence, secret tombs, and beautiful queens add some sparkle to an otherwise rather dull text. In addition, much attention is paid to Tutankhamun's father's rejection of Amun and the other gods in favor of Aten, a rather abstract concept. Although indisputably beautiful, the illustrations suffer from an inert quality, in part due to the Egyptian style the artist is echoing-flat and declarative, with each figure shown in profile. Supplement this title with Zahi Hawass's Tutankhamun: The Mystery of the Boy King (National Geographic, 2005) for photographs and text that focus on the archaeology and objects found in Tutankhamun's tomb.-Paula Willey, Baltimore County Public Library, Towson, MD (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.