Customer Reviews

The Hippopotamus Marsh

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Pauline Gedge again recreates an Egypt long gone in this first book in a wonderfully detailied trilogy about the reclaiming of Egypt's throne by the Taos: Seqenenra, and his three sons, Si-Amun, Kamose and Ahmose from the Hyksos that wear the two crowns. Seqenenra and his family lives in relative peace far from the influence of the usuper's court, yet he seethes within from the indignity of being a true Prince of Egypt that will neve be king. Add to this the Hyksos king, Apepa's fear that Seqenenra symbolizes a threat to his sovereignty and his constant baiting of Seqenenra to commit an act he can define as treasonous. Apepa throws down the final gauntlet when he demands that Seqenenra silence the hippopotami that inhabit Seqenenra's marshland simply because the beasts are disturbing his sleep. What follows is the recounting of a last ditch effort by Seqenenra to reclaim what he feels is rightfully his in the only way he knows how: war. The repercussions of his plans echo throughout his household and Gedge does a fine job of allowing each of the main characters an airing of their point of view as each acts out of his own sense of duty and honor to family and country. Gedge punctuates a simple story with much detail about the daily lives of the ancient Egyptians--the reader can feel the heat, rejoice in the flooding of the Nile, almost smell the scent cones worn on the head and commiserate with the affront to the dignity of these proud people of the bloodline of great kings considered gods. Recommended to all who love Gedges's other works of historical fiction and all those who are fascinated by Egypt and its kings.

Its a great book... but its the middle of a definant trilogy. Hard to read the third if you've never read the middle and hard to not read the third after reading the middle. So if your going to invest in this one, invest in all 3.

Although rather slow and ponderous during its initial 40%, this book paints a full and realistic picture of the world of ancient Egypt and its noble houses. One gets a real feel for the time and place in which these people passed their lives and of the cultural attitudes and values which might have driven them. This is the tale of the gradual awakening of the ancient royal house of Egypt to a "need" to confront the ruling Hyksos who have held power over the land, as the story opens, for the preceding 200 years.

Sequenenra Tao, the scion of his ancient family, rules as governor in the provincial backwater territory of Weset in Upper Egypt. Although he is descended of a long line of ancient Egyptian kings, he is nevertheless subjected to numerous petty humiliations by his Hyksos overlord, the Pharaoh Apepa. When these grow to be too much for the proud Tao family, Sequenenra feels compelled to act. And yet there is treachery everywhere, and even within his own household, a treachery which will alter the course of events that the governor of Weset reluctantly sets in motion.

This is a fine tale, indeed, and the last 60% of the book is, if not entirely compelling, certainly a very interesting read and will hold the intelligent reader through to the end. The tale promises more in subsequent volumes, too (it's billed as a trilogy and I will be reading the next volume, given the quality of the first). The characters are also vividly drawn and an integral part of this tale which is more than one of mere battles and adventure. A good read and one I have no qualms in recommending . . . or in reading further myself!

SWM

In the Hippopotamus Marsh, Pauline Gedge develops an interesting perspective for the once-rulers of Egypt, the Taos. In this book, they are passing life away as a minor ruling family of the Weset province in mid-Egypt. Their forefathers succumbed to the Hyksos, invaders from the east that have become Egypt's present pharaohs. The Hippopotamus Marsh tells the story of how the Taos come out of their physically comfortable, but psychologically stressed servitude to the Hyksos.

The story is told exclusively from the point of the view of the Tao family members, and the family dynamics are interesting and complex. The Weset area and its surroundings are described in beautiful detail. Unfortunately, Gedge says nothing about how anyone else in Egypt at that time lived or thought. She never lets us enter the minds of the many servants that wait on the Taos, and we almost never meet any of the peasants that support their moderate wealth.

The presentation of the Tao family is surrealistically loving and kind, being completely at odds with common modern views of rulers of this time period in Egypt. Gedge is clearly trying to fix this new point of view, and there is real interest in her reorienting our perceptions and assumptions. Gedge's presentation is not supported by anything factual, however, and the lack of viewpoint from those supporting the family--the servants and peasants--makes her postulate tenuous. Even so, Gedge makes the Taos and middle Egypt into interesting historical fiction.

The main problem with this book is that it goes nowhere except as a setup for the next book. Still, it's a good read, and hopefully the next book will continue on a good start.