Tombquest Book 1: Book of the Dead by Michael Northrop. 197 p. Scholastic Inc., January 27, 2015. 9780545723459. (Review from arc courtesy of publisher.)
Mixed-up Files (of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler) eat Tombquest's dust. This new multi-platform series hits the ground running. I can't think of a middle grade novel that begins with the main character dying but there you have it. Alex Sennefer is living on borrowed time of a mysterious illness but his Egyptologist mother, who curates the Ancient Egypt section of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, will have none of that. She has found the Book of the Dead and intends on using it to save her son. Little does she realize exactly what she will unleash in doing so. She saves Alex when his doctors proclaim there is nothing more to be done. Alex doesn't get to spend too much time celebrating though because his mom disappears and creepy, mysterious things keep happening with the exhibit. Museum security and the police have no clue what they're up against.
It is up to Alex and his best friend Ren, short for Renata, who is a genius and happens to be the daughter of the engineer in charge of well, everything at the museum, it seems, to find his mom. Of course, they need a bit of help from Dr. Todtman, a colleague of Alex's mom that Alex isn't certain he can trust. The two kids have nearly unlimited access to all parts of the museum. And, those parts they aren't allowed in? Let's just say they know their way around a few security codes.
Terrifying jackal-headed villain? Check. Stinking mummies? Check. Stinging swarms of deadly scorpions? Check. A stench-filled trip through the museum's sewer system? Check. Exploration of unused subway stations? Check. Enough booby traps to stymie Indy? You get the idea. Fast-paced, funny, smart. I'm so glad the rest of these books are releasing quickly so I (and my kids) don't have long to wait for the next installment. In the meanwhile, fans can visit the Tombquest website to play games and explore.
Book 2: Amulet Keepers releases on April 28.
Book 3 releases August 25.
Book 4 releases January 5.
Book 5 releases March 29, 2016.
Thanks to Scholastic for this arc.
Discover More: Ancient Egypt by Penelope Arlon. 80 p. Scholastic Inc., June 24, 2014. 9780545627399. (Finished copy courtesy of publisher)
I was so tickled to see a new Discover More book when I opened the box from Scholastic. And doubly so to see it was about ancient Egypt. Fifth and sixth graders study ancient civilizations in social studies and I can never keep enough books on my shelves. My love for this series is no secret. They're just about an automatic purchase for me and especially loved by my browsers and fact hounds.
The cover is bold and enticing with the iconic image of King Tut's golden visage dominating. The book is divided into three sections: Discovering ancient Egypt; Everyday life; and Afterlife. Tidbits of information float on collages of captivating images. One might be brought up a bit short by the up-close and personal photograph of a partially uncovered, unidentified mummy. I was brought up a bit short while poring over the photos of tomb treasures. The ornate scarab beetle piece is intricate. Even everyday objects, such as drinking cups and bowls are beautifully crafted. There's a photo of a baboon mummy's coffin, a golden mummy mask, and even a wrapped cat mummy. But I was a bit disappointed to see that a painted coffin or sarcophagus was labeled, "mummy." I can't say whether the piece is a coffin or a sarcophagus because I don't know what it is made of but I do know it's not a mummy. It may contain a mummy and I'm not sure why the picture is labeled so when the above mentioned baboon coffin and cat mummy were correctly labeled.
The use of the "Nile River" as a timeline was graphically interesting if a bit difficult to follow. The double-page spread of ancient inventions juxtaposed with their modern counterparts was rather cool. I might've arranged those in chronological order rather than the pyramid of images though. There were also times when I would've appreciated a sense of scale, most notably in the line-up of the great pharaohs. There's Khufu's statue, which the caption claims to be the smallest royal statue ever found that appears to be larger than the statue of Pepi II directly to the right. Each pharaoh sculpture rests on a base containing bits of information about dates, periods and significance and captions for each float above their heads with a short description. Cleopatra, the final pharaoh and intriguing ruler in her own right (Thank you Vicky Alvear Shecter) has a caption that reads, "Cleopatra was regarded as a great beauty." Really? That's all?
A later section about the other famous female pharaoh, Hatshepsut, contains a confusing paragraph. While I appreciate the challenges of distilling a subject's influence into two pages, the final paragraph says she disappeared mysteriously; asks if she was murdered; then states that her successor, Thutmose III had her mummy moved. Was she found or was her body found? The disjointed details annoy and do not illuminate. Sure, this overview is meant to tantalize and spur further reading but the tidbits should satisfy somewhat as well.
Thankfully, the double-page spread on mummies in the Afterlife chapter correctly identifies coffins and mummies. Unfortunately, the spread entitled, "How to build a pyramid," is woefully short on details. Basically, it says to cut big stons and build it. The photograph of the Great Sphinx of Giza is at odds with the statement that it is the biggest statue made out of a single stone. It sure does look like bricks make up its legs and haunches. There was some room in the description for an additional sentence explaining how the Sphinx was uncovered. Given that this series does not supply resources for suggested reading, I would've appreciated that. I could not access the bonus ebook. Perhaps it's not uploaded as yet since the book releases next month.
Individually, these are quibbles. Collectively, they disappoint a bit. Still, I look forward to future installments but will read them with a more critical eye hoping this was just a blip.
