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Between Two Rivers: Ancient Mesopotamia and the Birth of History
A fresh and fascinating new history of ancient Mesopotamia and the birth of history.
Thousands of years ago, in a part of the world we now call ancient Mesopotamia, people began writing things down for the very first time.
What they left behind, in a vast region that once sat between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, preserves leaps in human ingenuity, like the earliest depiction of a wheel and the first approximation of pi. But they also capture breathtakingly intimate, raw and relatable moments, like a dog's paw prints as it accidentally stepped into fresh clay, or the imprint of a child's teeth.
In Between Two Rivers, historian Dr Moudhy Al-Rashid reveals what these ancient people chose to record about their lives, allowing us to brush hands with them millennia later. We find a lullaby to soothe a baby, instructions for exorcising a ghost, countless receipts for beer, and the adorable, messy writing of preschoolers. We meet an enslaved person negotiating their freedom, an astronomer tracing the movement of the planets, a princess who may have created the world's first museum, and a working mother struggling with 'the juggle' in 1900 BCE.
Together, these fragments illuminate not just the history of Mesopotamia, but the story of how history was made.
Thousands of years ago, in a part of the world we now call ancient Mesopotamia, people began writing things down for the very first time.
What they left behind, in a vast region that once sat between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, preserves leaps in human ingenuity, like the earliest depiction of a wheel and the first approximation of pi. But they also capture breathtakingly intimate, raw and relatable moments, like a dog's paw prints as it accidentally stepped into fresh clay, or the imprint of a child's teeth.
In Between Two Rivers, historian Dr Moudhy Al-Rashid reveals what these ancient people chose to record about their lives, allowing us to brush hands with them millennia later. We find a lullaby to soothe a baby, instructions for exorcising a ghost, countless receipts for beer, and the adorable, messy writing of preschoolers. We meet an enslaved person negotiating their freedom, an astronomer tracing the movement of the planets, a princess who may have created the world's first museum, and a working mother struggling with 'the juggle' in 1900 BCE.
Together, these fragments illuminate not just the history of Mesopotamia, but the story of how history was made.
336 pages, Paperback
First published February 20, 2025
248 people are currently reading
9661 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 111 reviews
October 27, 2025
Between Two Rivers is a truly fascinating read.
Many history books can become bogged down in too much academia or dry prose but Mouthy Al-Rashid writes with passion and from the heart.It is almost as though you are with her making a presentation in which she is talking directly to you. Personal reference points in her life and connections to modern life and life in Mesopotamia are made providing further accessibility.
This is a book about communication - the way through which interpreting past lives are made through examining and understanding the little rolls or drums of clay covered with cuneiform writing. ( initially with 2000 signs then many more!) They unlock the world of the Sumerians, Babylonians and Assyrians.
Daily lives are opened to the reader; rulers and royals are explored; architecture and construction unpicked. The recognition of blending myth and history to create stories prevails- but also Mouthy Al- Rashid makes us question how modern history could be interpreted in the future.
Having recently read Elif Shafak's superb There Are Rivers In The Sky, Between Two Rivers felt like the perfect companion book.
Rather like Bethany Hughes and Michael Scott, Moudhy Al-Rashid's writing brings history to life in an entertaining and highly informative way. A brilliant read- highly recommended
Many history books can become bogged down in too much academia or dry prose but Mouthy Al-Rashid writes with passion and from the heart.It is almost as though you are with her making a presentation in which she is talking directly to you. Personal reference points in her life and connections to modern life and life in Mesopotamia are made providing further accessibility.
This is a book about communication - the way through which interpreting past lives are made through examining and understanding the little rolls or drums of clay covered with cuneiform writing. ( initially with 2000 signs then many more!) They unlock the world of the Sumerians, Babylonians and Assyrians.
Daily lives are opened to the reader; rulers and royals are explored; architecture and construction unpicked. The recognition of blending myth and history to create stories prevails- but also Mouthy Al- Rashid makes us question how modern history could be interpreted in the future.
Having recently read Elif Shafak's superb There Are Rivers In The Sky, Between Two Rivers felt like the perfect companion book.
Rather like Bethany Hughes and Michael Scott, Moudhy Al-Rashid's writing brings history to life in an entertaining and highly informative way. A brilliant read- highly recommended
September 25, 2024
Absolutely breathtaking. The narrative and style of Author are touching to the very core, I’ve completely fell in love with the Mesopotamian reality shown through her eyes. A 10000% recommendation for literally everyone - those who don’t know anything about ancient Mesopotamia and those who are convinced that they’ve read everything important about this period of time. Loved it so much.
June 21, 2025
Там, откъдето тръгва първото известно на човечеството писмено слово…
Земята между реките Тигър и Ефрат в днешен Ирак е видяла възхода и заника на много царства. В този плодороден отрязък са възниквали първите известни градове-държави (митичният Вавилон, магичните Ур, Урук и Лагаш, изисканата Ниневия), строени са огромни зикурати-прототипи на вавилонската кула, говорели са се шумерски, акадски, вавилонски, асирийски езици. Част от месопотамския мита за Гилгамеш е влязъл в библията с потопа и Ной, асирийските царе отбелязват присъствие в стария завет, а приличащото на птичи стъпки клинописно писмо върху вездесъщите глинени плочки не секва близо три хилядолетия от 3500 г.пр.н.е. до 79 г.пр.н.е. Тези три хилядолетия са обилно документирани в списъци, химни, митове, медицински рецепти, закони (и прочулият се с тях цар Хамурапи), актове за собственост, астрономически наблюдения с религиозни тълкувания, дипломатическа поща и ученически драскулки върху глинени плочки.
Муди ал-Рашид поднася едно интерактивно запознанство с този удивителен регион и неговите обитатели, които през 6 в.пр.н.е. вече са имали над 2000 годишна история… Текстът очертава непрекъснатите паралели на древния бит с технологичното ни настояще, и го прави удачно, защото - за разлика от технологиите - хората не се променят.
Разказът тече под формата на история за историята. През 6 в.пр.н.е. Вавилонската принцеса и жрица Енигалди-Нана е съхранявала множество предмети с вече близо две хилядолетна история. А през 1922 г. археологическите разкопки на Ленърд Ули изкарват на бял свят осем от тях. Историята на всеки предмет маркира отделяна глава и отвежда към аспект от културата, религията, науката, управлението, войните и бита на древните народи в поречието.
Любовта на авторката към древна Месопотамия е повече от доловима и се предава до голяма стелен на читателя. Проблемът е, че древността е оскъдна на цялостни и завършени истории и е по-скоро калейдоскоп от непасващи си парчета от различни истории (голяма част от които - митологични или идеологични), и Муди на моменти твърде много се повтаря или се плъзга по повърхността. Липсата на илюстрации също силно накърнява гладкото възприемане на текста. Неяснотата и догадките са правило, а не изключение. Но това е правилото и на стандартния човешки живот. Дано Междуречието познае скорошно благоденствие и да ни разкрие още много съкровища от необикновената си съдба и история.
3,5⭐️
Хубава съвместна дигитална изложба на няколко месопотамски артефакта на Гети и Лувъра:
https://mesopotamia.getty.edu/
Земята между реките Тигър и Ефрат в днешен Ирак е видяла възхода и заника на много царства. В този плодороден отрязък са възниквали първите известни градове-държави (митичният Вавилон, магичните Ур, Урук и Лагаш, изисканата Ниневия), строени са огромни зикурати-прототипи на вавилонската кула, говорели са се шумерски, акадски, вавилонски, асирийски езици. Част от месопотамския мита за Гилгамеш е влязъл в библията с потопа и Ной, асирийските царе отбелязват присъствие в стария завет, а приличащото на птичи стъпки клинописно писмо върху вездесъщите глинени плочки не секва близо три хилядолетия от 3500 г.пр.н.е. до 79 г.пр.н.е. Тези три хилядолетия са обилно документирани в списъци, химни, митове, медицински рецепти, закони (и прочулият се с тях цар Хамурапи), актове за собственост, астрономически наблюдения с религиозни тълкувания, дипломатическа поща и ученически драскулки върху глинени плочки.
Муди ал-Рашид поднася едно интерактивно запознанство с този удивителен регион и неговите обитатели, които през 6 в.пр.н.е. вече са имали над 2000 годишна история… Текстът очертава непрекъснатите паралели на древния бит с технологичното ни настояще, и го прави удачно, защото - за разлика от технологиите - хората не се променят.
Разказът тече под формата на история за историята. През 6 в.пр.н.е. Вавилонската принцеса и жрица Енигалди-Нана е съхранявала множество предмети с вече близо две хилядолетна история. А през 1922 г. археологическите разкопки на Ленърд Ули изкарват на бял свят осем от тях. Историята на всеки предмет маркира отделяна глава и отвежда към аспект от културата, религията, науката, управлението, войните и бита на древните народи в поречието.
Любовта на авторката към древна Месопотамия е повече от доловима и се предава до голяма стелен на читателя. Проблемът е, че древността е оскъдна на цялостни и завършени истории и е по-скоро калейдоскоп от непасващи си парчета от различни истории (голяма част от които - митологични или идеологични), и Муди на моменти твърде много се повтаря или се плъзга по повърхността. Липсата на илюстрации също силно накърнява гладкото възприемане на текста. Неяснотата и догадките са правило, а не изключение. Но това е правилото и на стандартния човешки живот. Дано Междуречието познае скорошно благоденствие и да ни разкрие още много съкровища от необикновената си съдба и история.
3,5⭐️
Хубава съвместна дигитална изложба на няколко месопотамски артефакта на Гети и Лувъра:
https://mesopotamia.getty.edu/
April 18, 2025
2.5/5
I wanted to like this a lot more than I did. I've recently been on a bit of a Mesopotamia bender, so when this new book came out, I was really excited to see what it could add to the story. The problem is, it didn't add much to what I already knew. I've read reasonably straightforward histories of the region, and this is not trying to be that. instead, it's a discussion of how different aspects of life -- war, trade, school -- can be inferred from artifacts. There were some good bits there. I liked learning about schoolboy tablets, and what we can infer about burial practices and respect for enemies in war from the writings and excavations of mass burials. But even at this task, the end result seemed awfully shallow: examples are re-used and recycled, which makes them seem, on average, less fresh, and led me to wonder whether those case studies are truly all that there is to build a story on. Also, there's an awful lot of repetitive point-making about how Mesopotamians were People Just Like Us, which would have been more powerful if it had been supported, rather than asserted over and over again in far too many words. Finally, and perhaps worst of all, there are no images! All the text spent describing steles and texts and images and artifacts, and not a single image provided to actually show us what it's all about. I had to go to a separate book -- a mathematics book! -- to find an image of the Plimpton tablet, the earliest known set of Pythagorean triples, compiled centuries upon centuries before Pythagoras made his name.
Perhaps this will serve for someone looking for a very gentle introduction to Mesopotamia. But for someone who's looking for more meat, I recommend Paul Kriwaczek's much richer and more informative book on Babylon.
I wanted to like this a lot more than I did. I've recently been on a bit of a Mesopotamia bender, so when this new book came out, I was really excited to see what it could add to the story. The problem is, it didn't add much to what I already knew. I've read reasonably straightforward histories of the region, and this is not trying to be that. instead, it's a discussion of how different aspects of life -- war, trade, school -- can be inferred from artifacts. There were some good bits there. I liked learning about schoolboy tablets, and what we can infer about burial practices and respect for enemies in war from the writings and excavations of mass burials. But even at this task, the end result seemed awfully shallow: examples are re-used and recycled, which makes them seem, on average, less fresh, and led me to wonder whether those case studies are truly all that there is to build a story on. Also, there's an awful lot of repetitive point-making about how Mesopotamians were People Just Like Us, which would have been more powerful if it had been supported, rather than asserted over and over again in far too many words. Finally, and perhaps worst of all, there are no images! All the text spent describing steles and texts and images and artifacts, and not a single image provided to actually show us what it's all about. I had to go to a separate book -- a mathematics book! -- to find an image of the Plimpton tablet, the earliest known set of Pythagorean triples, compiled centuries upon centuries before Pythagoras made his name.
Perhaps this will serve for someone looking for a very gentle introduction to Mesopotamia. But for someone who's looking for more meat, I recommend Paul Kriwaczek's much richer and more informative book on Babylon.
August 7, 2025
Between Two Rivers starts in Ur with excavations of objects which would have been excavated themselves: what its discoverer dubbed the first museum. A brick. A statue. The head of a mace. A 2500-year-old museum label.
In what is perhaps my favourite approach to writing about ancient history, Moudhy Al-Rashid starts with sites and objects, with the written medium and material that we get the history from. This is also about personal connections, what moved the dead, what moves the living scholar, and method. You get to learn a bit about looking at the world like an archaeologist along the way.
_____________
Al-Rashid is a historian of medicine and science, though there is unfortunately little of that in the text. She does notes that cuneiform dictionaries did not limit themselves to practical terms and real objects but seemed to be an exploration of all the abstract combinatory possibilities the new technology of writing offered = knowledge-making as free movement, exploration - play, if you will (my interpretation, I think I am bastardizing it from Gadamer.)
Her thesis (which is well-worth taking a look at) as well as her further work focus on mental illness and its treatment in Ancient Near East.
But Between Two Rivers certainly bears the imprint of her preoccupation with human inner life and embodied experience and the ways language captures that.
In what is perhaps my favourite approach to writing about ancient history, Moudhy Al-Rashid starts with sites and objects, with the written medium and material that we get the history from. This is also about personal connections, what moved the dead, what moves the living scholar, and method. You get to learn a bit about looking at the world like an archaeologist along the way.
_____________
Al-Rashid is a historian of medicine and science, though there is unfortunately little of that in the text. She does notes that cuneiform dictionaries did not limit themselves to practical terms and real objects but seemed to be an exploration of all the abstract combinatory possibilities the new technology of writing offered = knowledge-making as free movement, exploration - play, if you will (my interpretation, I think I am bastardizing it from Gadamer.)
Her thesis (which is well-worth taking a look at) as well as her further work focus on mental illness and its treatment in Ancient Near East.
But Between Two Rivers certainly bears the imprint of her preoccupation with human inner life and embodied experience and the ways language captures that.
May 5, 2025
An excellent history of Mesopotamia through a collection of objects found in an enigmatic room in the ruins of the ancient city of Ur. Moudhy Al-Rashid writes brilliantly and passionately about how the people of Mesopotamia lived, loved and worked. Her thoughts on history, writing and culture are insightful, and she casts a lot of light into how ancient societies parallel our own, though human needs, but are also vastly different due to their economic structures. Her book doesn't ignore the inequalities of class and gender, and this makes it particularly valuable. There's only the briefest of mentions of the US led Iraq War, but it's made to illuminate ancient warfare in all its simularities and differences. I would, however, have been interested in what Al-Rashid thought of the impact of that war, and its aftermath on our knowledge of the region's history. An excellent history book. Highly recommended.
Read
June 28, 2025Despite the promise of the title, "Between Two Rivers" offers a fragmented reading experience, based on the description of archaeological objects and short contextual stories, without ever building a clear line of historical development. The lack of a chronological progression or a common thread linking the chapters makes the reading seem more like a collection of disconnected spaces than a journey through the birth of Mesopotamian civilisation. For those looking for an evolutionary overview or a broader argument about the emergence of history, the book's structure can be frustrating.
I recommend it first:
“Mesopotamia and the Birth of Civilization” (2010) Paul Kriwaczek, https://virtual-illusion.blogspot.com...
"O Infinito num Junco” (2020) Irene Vallejo https://virtual-illusion.blogspot.com...
I recommend it first:
“Mesopotamia and the Birth of Civilization” (2010) Paul Kriwaczek, https://virtual-illusion.blogspot.com...
"O Infinito num Junco” (2020) Irene Vallejo https://virtual-illusion.blogspot.com...
April 27, 2025
Average. Feels like an introductory chapter of a book than an introductory book. very light - well written and enthusiastic but light. Jumps about discussing various social/cultural topics with a touch of political history for context. Enjoyable bit feels a bit aimless. Much better on the subject out there.
August 19, 2025
A highly readable history of Mesopotamia, loosely framed around the idea of how Mesopotamians viewed history themselves. Al-Rashid has a breezy, chatty tone and wants us to love her cast of ancient characters as much as she does. She uses a lot of modern analogies to make this world come alive, but is careful not to tip into obscuring difference either. This was a great introduction to Mesopotamian history and convinced me to add the Epic of Gilgamesh to my TBR.
August 29, 2025
I swear: In another life, I was meant to be translating cuneiform tablets in the basement of the British Museum.
This was such a fun, readable, introductory look into ancient Mesopotamia. The book is organized around a series of artifacts, with each chapter delving into a different aspect of ancient life. Whether it was warfare, writing, the lives of women, or the Mesopotamian's study of the stars and science, I found that the information included was very high-level, but written with the right amount of enthusiasm and personal anecdotes to get someone hyped up about this part of history.
The only downside to the organization of this book is that it wasn't chronological, and as someone who is just starting to dip their toes into learning about ancient history, it was hard to get a sense of the timelines and orient myself in terms of the different empires. I also felt that this book lacked three things that would have really elevated the reading experience: a map (I wanted this so bad!), a timeline, and, most of all, pictures!! This entire book was organized around artifacts, and yet there were not images of those artifacts included. The amount of times I went to google something that was being discussed was kind of absurd.
However, if you're just looking to get excited about this part of history, and to really encourage yourself to go read more on the topic, then this is definitely a great place to start.
This was such a fun, readable, introductory look into ancient Mesopotamia. The book is organized around a series of artifacts, with each chapter delving into a different aspect of ancient life. Whether it was warfare, writing, the lives of women, or the Mesopotamian's study of the stars and science, I found that the information included was very high-level, but written with the right amount of enthusiasm and personal anecdotes to get someone hyped up about this part of history.
The only downside to the organization of this book is that it wasn't chronological, and as someone who is just starting to dip their toes into learning about ancient history, it was hard to get a sense of the timelines and orient myself in terms of the different empires. I also felt that this book lacked three things that would have really elevated the reading experience: a map (I wanted this so bad!), a timeline, and, most of all, pictures!! This entire book was organized around artifacts, and yet there were not images of those artifacts included. The amount of times I went to google something that was being discussed was kind of absurd.
However, if you're just looking to get excited about this part of history, and to really encourage yourself to go read more on the topic, then this is definitely a great place to start.
October 10, 2025
“Something which has never occurred since time immemorial: a young woman did not fart in her husband’s embrace.” - Sumerian proverb, 2100 BCE.
August 19, 2025
Imagine if, 2700 years from now, the only thing anyone ever knew about your entire existence was that your coworker thought you were a colossal dumbass.
August 4, 2025
Never has "don't judge a book by its cover" (or its title) rang so true for me. I was captivated by this cover, reminding me of Circe and promising me an earthy, liquid tale of ancient life on the river. In fact, the rivers play just a tiny role in this scattered summary of occasionally interesting, mostly mundane receipts from ancient bureaucracy. The author is passionate to be sure, but is seemingly passionate about the very idea that, 4000 years ago, society functioned in very similar ways to 2000 years ago. I don't know if it's just me, but I was really unsurprised to find out that women were sometimes priestesses, sometimes weavers in 2000 BCE, and some of their kids went to some kind of school to learn their letters; or that wars were fought over holy relics, that leaders likely embellished their triumphs in the historical records or that soldiers were unceremoniously dumped in mass graves. These all seem like very obvious things to me.
The author's passion is for ancient science, and it shows - the most interesting and coherent passages are examining the astronomers and physicians of the time. Yet this makes up a tiny part of a book overly obsessed with the idea that people wrote their day-to-day bookkeeping on bits of clay. There are also many many repetitions of the book's stock phrases - cuneiform is hard to read, cuneiform is fascinating, cuneiform is old. The final nail in the coffin for me is the over-reliance on modern puns and inappropriate threading to modern concepts, which are at best condescending and at worst excruciatingly reductive. I don't need the phrase "donkey DHL" to understand mules were used for goods transport, and I certainly don't need the author to equate a creation myth's genitalia-less clay figure to an original "non-binary" identity. (I am one of those folks - we're not eunuchs?)
Anyway. It was much much duller than it needed to be. There was an interesting article in this, but it shouldn't have been a book - either that, or the author should have stuck to her passion for ancient science and dug deeper instead of so broadly. A shame.
The author's passion is for ancient science, and it shows - the most interesting and coherent passages are examining the astronomers and physicians of the time. Yet this makes up a tiny part of a book overly obsessed with the idea that people wrote their day-to-day bookkeeping on bits of clay. There are also many many repetitions of the book's stock phrases - cuneiform is hard to read, cuneiform is fascinating, cuneiform is old. The final nail in the coffin for me is the over-reliance on modern puns and inappropriate threading to modern concepts, which are at best condescending and at worst excruciatingly reductive. I don't need the phrase "donkey DHL" to understand mules were used for goods transport, and I certainly don't need the author to equate a creation myth's genitalia-less clay figure to an original "non-binary" identity. (I am one of those folks - we're not eunuchs?)
Anyway. It was much much duller than it needed to be. There was an interesting article in this, but it shouldn't have been a book - either that, or the author should have stuck to her passion for ancient science and dug deeper instead of so broadly. A shame.
April 15, 2025
I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway and was really looking forward to diving into Mesopotamian history. Unfortunately, the writing style just fell flat for me. It lacked dynamism and imagery. So many unnecessary phrases and clauses that made sentences unnecessarily long and added no value. Perhaps some maps, timelines, and images would have supported the author’s description of objects and helped establish some atmosphere and immerse readers in that ancient world. There was a rambling quality about the book that didn’t feel purposeful. I really tried to get into this book, but couldn’t get past chapter one, and would recommend that the author read something by Adam Grant or Michael Pollan for inspiration.
April 27, 2025
I have only rated it 3 stars . It is vividly written with great verve and enthusiasm. However as a beginner to the subject I found all the jumping around through millenia a little confusing as is the mixture of myth and history. Someillustrations of cuneiform writing would help which is vividly written about but hard to visualise. The author also interposes her own experience as a modern day mother with historical writing This may appeal to some but not to me. The author is clearly very knowledgeable and enthusiastic about her subject and writes in an entertaining manner but I did not feel I got as much of the history I was looking for. Perhaps my own failing!
July 26, 2025
Many thanks to NetGalley and to this book's publisher for granting me access to a digital advance reader copy of this delightful, informative, light-hearted romp through the millennia-long history of society and culture in the so-called (perhaps erroneously) "cradle of civilization," otherwise known as ancient Mesopotamia, a Greek portmanteau meaning "land between two rivers," as the title references. One part personal memoir, two parts examination of Sumerian and Akkadian history via extant artifacts housed in some of the world's greatest museums, this was such an unexpectedly joyous and entertaining book!! After reading, I just wish I could spend an afternoon with author and scholar Moudhy Al-Rashid, picking her brain about everyday life in Ur, or Uruk, or Eridu...
Highly, highly recommended!
Highly, highly recommended!
August 28, 2025
I’ll hold up my hands and say that my prior knowledge of Mesopotamia was pretty much as follows: cradle of civilization, Epic of Gilgamesh, Code of Hammurabi, Ea-Nasir copper complaint memes.
Luckily, this was a really wonderful introduction to the ancient region that made me curious to learn more. Al-Rashid’s writing style is thorough, passionate, and readable, creating something that has depth but is accessible.
Looking at the history and culture of Mesopotamia through a series of objects that were excavated from what may have themselves been part of an ancient museum, this book explores so many aspects of that bygone world while also drawing through lines to life today.
Luckily, this was a really wonderful introduction to the ancient region that made me curious to learn more. Al-Rashid’s writing style is thorough, passionate, and readable, creating something that has depth but is accessible.
Looking at the history and culture of Mesopotamia through a series of objects that were excavated from what may have themselves been part of an ancient museum, this book explores so many aspects of that bygone world while also drawing through lines to life today.
May 22, 2025
This ruled! Really passionate and approachable, and all in service of showing how, just like every other people or place in history, they really were just like us fr.
September 24, 2025
You’ll wish you could read cuneiform
March 20, 2025
I love reading about history and Mesopotamia. So much clever research went into this book. Very informative and interesting
June 14, 2025
This erudite work begins with a collection of disparate objects, including clay tablets with cuneiform writing. The objects belong to what was perhaps the first known museum. Thus begins a meditation on the nature of history focused on what written inscriptions allow us to know about an era. One of Al-Rashid's main points is that cuneiform tablets excavated in modern Iraq and Syria allow access not only to the privileged and wealthy but also to the more everyday aspects of ancient social life, including the lives of women and slaves, administrative concerns and even receipts for beer. Learning about people in their own words is a game-changer in how we understand the past. The book is a beautifully written celebration of history from below, weaving together aspects of the author's life with the joys and sorrows of Mesopotamian peoples.
August 14, 2025
During a 1925 archaeological excavation of the Ur temple complex, eight artifacts were discovered. The evidence of the dig did not reflect mere happenstance, but suggest that these items had been purposefully gathered and stored together, suggesting that this was the first museum. Moudhy Al-Rashid's Between Two Rivers: Ancient Mesopotamia and the Birth of History uses these objects to frame the book, using them as entry points to Mesopotamian history that then consider commonalities across humanity and the way history is constructed, preserved and disseminated.
This excellent book finely balances the work of an academic with a very readable and personal tone. The chapters are formed from the objects with a coda focused on Ennigaldi-Nanna, the priestess living in the palace where the subject objects were found. Each section provides contextualization, pulling in translations from some of the many surviving cuneiform documents of both official channels and the direct communication of more ordinary (but still privileged to some degree) individuals. Some of the featured items include: a mud brick, school tablets, a boundary stone, a cone for astronomical work and a mace head.
Across these chapters, Al-Rashid makes connections to the modern day, or universal aspects of humanity. A frequent descriptor of the cuneiform tablets is their size similarity to a tablet. There are always tensions between memory and history, advances of science against the brutality of war, the hopes of a better future for our children against the challenge of survival. There is also the clear joy of a scholar being able to physically work with a historic object they have read about and studied, in turn offering that joy or experience with students.
Highly recommended to readers of the history of history, importance of primary sources, and ancient history.
I received a free digital version of this book via NetGalley thanks to the publisher.
This excellent book finely balances the work of an academic with a very readable and personal tone. The chapters are formed from the objects with a coda focused on Ennigaldi-Nanna, the priestess living in the palace where the subject objects were found. Each section provides contextualization, pulling in translations from some of the many surviving cuneiform documents of both official channels and the direct communication of more ordinary (but still privileged to some degree) individuals. Some of the featured items include: a mud brick, school tablets, a boundary stone, a cone for astronomical work and a mace head.
Across these chapters, Al-Rashid makes connections to the modern day, or universal aspects of humanity. A frequent descriptor of the cuneiform tablets is their size similarity to a tablet. There are always tensions between memory and history, advances of science against the brutality of war, the hopes of a better future for our children against the challenge of survival. There is also the clear joy of a scholar being able to physically work with a historic object they have read about and studied, in turn offering that joy or experience with students.
Highly recommended to readers of the history of history, importance of primary sources, and ancient history.
I received a free digital version of this book via NetGalley thanks to the publisher.
September 21, 2025
Ms. al-Rashid has written a remarkably readable and chatty history of Mesopotamia. It is a delightful read, especially as she focuses significant attention on those individuals normally forgotten in history books. In particular, Chapter 7 focuses attention on those who were trafficked and/or enslaved in Mesopotamian society, and what their lives would have been like, to the best we can ascertain. I have only one kvetch...in a history book that focuses on specific objects in order to bring the history to us, it would be better to provide photos of those objects so that the reader could see them.
October 13, 2025
A truly compelling, often funny, and deeply personal history of Mesopotamia. Each chapter focuses on a single artifact to explore topics such as kingship, commerce, war, writing and education, science, women’s roles in society, and the history of history. While reading, I found myself wishing for visual aids (images of the artifacts and sites in question, maps, a more complete timeline), but the writing is great and Al-Rashid gets super granular into each topic in a way that makes what could be a dry retelling really interesting and fun.
August 24, 2025
I highly recommend checking out this book if you are a fan of history. The documents found tell us a story we’d understand today with what life was like and us as the reader can discover that it wasn’t so far off from what we deal with now. I love learning more about Ancient Mesopotamia and everything this civilization has to offer.
October 2, 2025
Good book. I especially liked how the author weaves in personal reflections and touches on contemporary politics, it makes the history feel more alive and relevant. A key takeaway is that if you don’t write your own history, someone else will do it for you, and probably not the way you’d want.
October 3, 2025
I became interested in the history of the Middle East after a visit to The Maparium in Boston some years ago. Since then I have read several excellent books on the subject. So far, all of the books I have read on the subject have broadened my knowledge. I was thrilled when I won Between Two Rivers in a Goodreads giveawayp because I saw it as another opportunity to further my understanding of the history of the Middle East . Unfortunately, I just couldn’t finish this book. It is way, way too conversational with the author inserting herself into the book in a way that for me was jarring and off putting. Although I appreciate the enthusiasm and passion that the author brings to her subject I found this to be very repetitive and way too narrow a focus to hold my interest. While reading this book I actually began to wonder who exactly was the target audience. Having won this in a Goodreads giveaway, I wish I could give it a glowing review but I found myself putting off reading it; a sure sign, in my book that I am probably not going to see the book through to the end.
May 11, 2025
Great invitation to discover the world of ancient Mesopotamia. Fantastic book.
September 26, 2025
2.5 stars. For full disclosure, I listened to the audiobook version read by the author, which I think was an issue with this book. It was so bogged down with dates and names, that it sounded like a textbook read by a novice narrator. The organization is almost impossible to follow in this format. Some of the stories are interesting, but just when I start getting into the story of someone, the book moves on to some other unconnected story. I’ve read and listened to many history books that I’ve loved, so it’s definitely not because I’m not into this genre. I think the author is extremely accomplished and knowledgeable in her area of study, but I don’t think she weaves a good story about what she knows.
March 10, 2025
Beautifully written
This is a beautifully written book in which the author masterfully renders a difficult and dry subject into delightful tale of king, princesses and ordinary people. From clay tablets and cuneiform writings she brings the ancient civilizations of Mesopotamia alive and makes them relatable to our modern lives today.
I thank the author for this wonderful book.
This is a beautifully written book in which the author masterfully renders a difficult and dry subject into delightful tale of king, princesses and ordinary people. From clay tablets and cuneiform writings she brings the ancient civilizations of Mesopotamia alive and makes them relatable to our modern lives today.
I thank the author for this wonderful book.
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