Who Built the Pyramid?

by Meredith Hooper, Robin Heighway-Bury

A truly egalitarian look at how a real pyramid was built.Who DID build the pyramid? In this innovative nonfiction title, everyonefrom the mighty king to the lowly water carrier claims to have built thismassive monument. And whether you’re asking the high priest or the stone mason, each person has a good reason to claim credit for a real pyramid that was built more than four thousand years ago. With lively text and bold illustrations, Meredith Hooper and Robin Heighway-Bury create an unusual, carefully researched look at one of the wonders of ancient Egypt. Meredith Hooper has worked with Egyptologists at the British Museum in London and at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City to create this story—and fact-filled endnotes provide even more fascinating information.

Genres: History, Picture Books, Nonfiction, Egypt, Construction, Childrens

37 pages, Paperback

First published August 6, 2001

About the author

Meredith Hooper uses the storybook form in Who Built the Pyramid? to make the latest research accessible for a young audience. Meredith Hooper is an historian by training and the author of many books, ranging in subject from Antarctica to aviation, from the history of water to the history of inventions.
Hooper, born in 1939, graduated in history from the University of Adelaide, then studied imperial history at Oxford.

Reviews

[Joe Thorpe · Rating 5 out of 5]

best book EVER

[Jen Traub · Rating 4 out of 5]

While not full of as much information, it was a definitely engaging read about the pyramids. It introduced the reader to the people involved in the making of a pyramid, from the pharaoh who ordered it to the slaves who labored over it.

[JDJackson379 · Rating 5 out of 5]

C

[ESL 5 Chang Ping · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wade - it's alittle boring

[Mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Any book that introduces ancient civilizations to a young audience often catches my interest, but very few capture an attentive audience. Meredith Hooper successfully gathers an interesting cast of characters and introduces the reader to all the many individuals who would have been involved in building a pyramid. She communicates their roles in a brief yet complete manner. The unique illustrative style of Robin Heighway-Bury fleshed out the characters and further demonstrated their contributions to the design and construction of the pyramid of King Senwosret.

The real surprise was the additional pages after the story that contained text, images and maps of the actual pyramid and what is known about it today. This book successfully introduces ancient history and archaeology to a young reader, and although it is typically regarded as appropriate to a Grade 3-8 level, it captured my 5-year old's imagination. The photographs of the current decayed pyramid and the problems faced by archaeologists in accessing it (the burial chamber level is flooded) all make the story portion that much more interesting. The maps of the pyramids aid in exploration and lead to more questions and discussions. Overall a real enjoyable read that feeds the imagination (and the brain!) of readers at all levels.

[Bernadette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although I found the illustrations a bit bizarre, the book overall was great - and enjoyed by my fourth grade students. The book introduces the various workers involved in the building of the pyramids with each one claiming full responsibility for the pyramids. The names were a bit hard to pronounce and read aloud to the students. At the end of the book, there are several pages with informative paragraphs and photographs relating to the pyramids. Index included.

[Brandy Gilbertson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book really brings about the idea of team work to children. Each of the characters contributed something to the building of the pyramids and without the work of one the pyramids would not have been complete. The book contains a large amount of historical information at the end. I think this book could easily be read to younger children while the older children may enjoy the more historical information.

*Book from text

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an excellent book on showing children how it takes teamwork to build things. It also tells what they put in the pyramid and how some people steal out of it. Would be good to read when talking about a lesson on pyramids or Egypt. The letters are big and there aren't many words per page.

[Aczel Barron]

I think this book was amazing.I already new who built the pyramids but it was still cool to read.My favorite part was when they got the sand stone. The crazy part was when the donkey was tired and still made to throw desert.

[Ashlyn · Rating 1 out of 5]

i really didnt like this book at all it seems like the book switches off to different topics every two pages but this book has nice pastel colors cool and creative drawings its not an chapter book but it has 37 pages.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting perspective and look at Egyptian culture. Great to peak the interest of those studying the topic or culture.

[Sangeeta]

very good book not only enjoyed reading with my kid but also loved listening him explaining me abt pyramids

[Haley Hoenke · Rating 5 out of 5]

#history #social studies #egypt