Honestly while I thought this did contain new to me information and was well researched I just wasn't appreciative of the writing.It was rather dull at points and the author constantly switched timelines in the middle of certain pharaoh's stories.You might be reading about Ptolemy III but in actuality the author has switched to Ptolemy I mid paragraph and then back again after several sentences.It was a pretty frustrating issue for me but I prevailed and did enjoy reading about the Triumphs,some of the lesser known pharaohs and of course Alexandria itself.

I learned a lot from reading this book, it's very thorough. That's also part of what I didn't like about it, just because it's so much to take in that it took me so much longer than it normally would to read through. I've never read a book on this period of Egyptian history before, but I feel like it does a good job of discussing the history in a way that is accessible to someone with limited knowledge of this area.

The synopsis of this book was highly intriguing to me as I love reading about the history of Ancient Egypt as well as other ancient civilizations. This specific book covers the last dynasty of Ancient Egypt from the ruling of Alexander the Great to Cleopatra. This period in Ancient Egyptian history was very unique after Ptolemy began a new dynasty in ancient Egypt that lasted for several hundred years. Alexandria became the new center of this civilization that blended ancient Egyptian and ancient Greek societies together prior to the rise of Ancient Rome. I really liked how detailed the writing was and you can tell this book was very well researched by the author as he relied on original documents from this era in history as well as recent archaeological discoveries to tell this story. I liked how interesting the content of this book was and how the author interpreted these archaeological discoveries and original documents in a way that the reader could easily understand their meaning. I think a lot of people who love reading about this period in history will enjoy this book.

Deep, clear, and a very fun read! This part of history has been magnified by so many over the centuries at varying degrees of accuracy, completion, and care. If one wanted to know what actually occurred in that time period then Wilkinson is someone you must read! I know it's difficult, and I've often thought about how much about the documentation of the daily lives of Ancient Egyptians was lost during the fire at Alexandria. I wish this book opined on the daily lives of the citizens back then, but that's no fault of this book.

Overall, I really enjoyed learning about this era of history. There's so much written about Alexander the Great and Cleopatra VII, but this is the first time I've read something this in depth about the centuries in between. The only minor complaint I had is that I wish the information about the more day-to-day life in the era was incorporated into the book better. There were a few times where a chapter would leave off on a bit of a cliffhanger about what happened next, and then the next chapter would dive into temple politics and agriculture.

Toby Wilkinson has cemented himself as a reputable and fair Egyptologist, looking at all viewpoints in the historical periods he covers. This latest book of his was well-written and insightful.

Wilkinson again confirms his preeminent position as the foremost contemporary scholar of Ancient Egypt. Fantastic look at an Empire in decline and the figures that made the Last Dynasty such a captivating moment for everyone from historians to Shakespeare. An essential read.