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Book Review
by Mary Kay
Radnich
Secrets of the Mummies
Shelley Tanaka
Illustrations by Greg Ruhl
A Scholastic/Madison Press Book
Scholastic, INC.
March 2000
This month was the annual Book Fair at my daughter’s school.
So, being a good mom, I volunteered my services for a morning. In
the school computer lab turned bookstore, right across from my
seat at the checkout desk, was this neat looking children’s
book, Secrets of the Mummies. Of course, I had to take it
off the shelf and somehow, mysteriously, it ended up in my
daughter’s order of books. (Gee, wonder who put it in there?)
This little full-color paperback is full of interesting
information and stories of mummies, specifically some of the
famous ones, such as TUT and Rameses II as well as some
not-so-famous mummies, a teenager named Nakht and a young woman
called Djed, followed by stories of them.
Nakht was a young boy, a weaver, when he died. Because of poor
crops the last two years of his life, he most likely suffered from
malnourishment, a tapeworm and malaria, which was probably what
killed him. We know this from scientists studying the remains of
his mummy, which reveals this information, as explained in the
book.
Ramses II’s nose was propped up with a bone to enhance his
kingly profile and filled with peppercorns, to reawaken his sense
of smell. Both of these tidbits of information was revealed via
x-rays of his head and are very visible in the accompanying
photographs.
And poor Djed, she was a woman with bad teeth and apparently,
constant, killing toothaches. This information, too, was
determined by x-raying her mummy, without disturbing it in any
way.
Stories and interpretations aside, what is most impressive
about this little book is the photographs and graphics. All
aspects of the mummification process as well as highlights of the
individuals’ lives are well illustrated and impressive.
Note: The edition of the book that I reviewed was published for
distribution through the school market only. However, the book is
available through Amazon.com and your local bookstore.
TRAVEL PHOTOGRAPHY:
A Guide To Taking Better
Pictures
Richard I’Anson
A Lonely Planet Publication
October 2000
You’ve got your ticket in your travel bag, your itinerary in
your pocket for the trip of a lifetime to Egypt and you dearly
desire to come home with National Geographic quality, Pulitzer
Prize winning photographs, with which to impress your friends and
relatives. Deep in your soul, you know that the ancient Brownie
camera, the old Kodak 110 Instamatic, your daughter’s Barbie
camera and that old Polaroid just won’t deliver. Or maybe you’re
like me, you have an assortment of mismatched 35mm equipment and
you realize that your eyes are not as young as they used to be (as
evidenced by your new bifocals) and that manual focusing is no
longer high on your list of talents. Not to mention the endless
assortment of questions regarding composition, lighting, focusing
and depth of field.
Regardless of your status as an amateur photographer, the
question is: To where do you turn for help? As always, Lonely
Plant Publications has come to the rescue with TRAVEL
PHOTOGRAPHY: A Guide To Taking Better Pictures by Richard I’Anson.
This pocket-sized, full-color, comprehensive, 222-page
photography guide is one of the best solutions to the amateur
travel photographer’s woes that I have seen in a long time.
Fully illustrated with color photographs (and the illustrations
are gorgeous, although small), the author draws on his vast
experience as a professional travel photographer and willingly
shares many tricks of the trade with his readers. One of the most
enlightening aspects of the book is that he not only describes
various good and bad shots to you, he has presented color examples
– contrasts, if you will – of both. A good shot vs. a bad
shot, of the same subject. And each photograph is captioned with
the author’s comments regarding the success of the picture as
well as the type of equipment and film that was used.
Every topic that you could possibly think of in travel
photography is covered. Visiting a market? How to get the best
shots. Can’t use a flash inside a mosque or monument? What to do
to capture the best picture. Want to photograph those charming
local children but don’t know how to approach them? It’s in
there. And the burning question in all photographer’s hearts –
what film should I use to make my photo of those mountain peaks
look more three dimensional? The author has an answer for you.
My only criticism of the book? Well, put it this way. We need
to take up a collection to send Mr. I’Anson to Egypt. By the
absence of any photographs of Egypt, it’s obvious that he has
never been there!
If you want to take your travel photography seriously, or just
need a few new tips and inspiration, I highly recommend TRAVEL
PHOTOGRAPHY. Small enough to fit in your pack yet thorough
enough to leave no question unanswered, you can’t go wrong with
a $16.99 investment in this book.
Video Visits, Egypt
Land of Ancient Wonders
ISBN 1-56345-106-9
International Video Network
A Division of NN Communications, Inc.
2246 Camino Ramon, Star Ramon, CA 94583
107 Power Road, Chiswick, London W4 5PL
Buy any standard, one is much better off with a good guidebook
then this video, which is basically the video equivalent of a
guidebook. Yet, I did enjoy it. While the information is rather
sketchy compared to a guidebook (well, more than just rather
sketchy), the street scenes in Cairo, of Alexandria and the upper
Nile were good. Perhaps I liked it best just because it is
different then the usual fare that concentrates strictly on the
mysteries of the Pyramids and Sphinx. It did remind me of being in
Egypt, and it is an easy introduction for people planning a trip,
provided they understand the film's limitations. For those taking
children to Egypt who may be hesitant to dig into reading about
Egypt, it provides some orientation.
One simply cannot fit into a 58-minute tape the information
needed to really experience Egypt. For example, the Sinai was
barely touched upon, and interestingly, a significant time was
given to Alexandria, which, while an important destination,
received a disproportionate amount of coverage. Perhaps in the
future, some company may make a series of travel tapes on Egypt
that might more adequately cover what is a huge topic.
From the standpoint of quality, the tape is very good,
appearing to have been made recently and with good equipment. The
pictures are crisp and clear and the sound is fine. And perhaps
one of the best things about the tape is the fact that it can be
rented from many video stores (I found it at Hollywood Video), at
a price that is usually less than most other rentals.
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