Mummies, Coffins and Kids

At Egypt camp last week, we quieted 33 loud and rambunctious kids—aged 9-13—everyday with a single phrase: “Let me tell you a story.” Even the older ones, those on the cusp of being “way too cool” for such things, stopped to listen.

My friend Diane Capriola, awesome owner of LITTLE SHOP OF STORIES in Decatur, and I ran the camp based on Rick Riordan’s latest book, THE RED PYRAMID.

It was easy to make the campers shiver with delight at the “gross” details of how organs and brains were removed for mummification, but they grew almost breathless when I shared ancients stories.

After I finished the tale of a mummy who sat up in his coffin to challenge a book-stealing prince to a Senet game, one normally over-active boy looked at me with wide eyes and asked:

“Did that really happen?”

I didn’t know how to respond at first. “What do you think?” I finally asked as gently as I could. He smiled sheepishly, “No, it was just a story.”

Yet, for a moment anyway, his absorption was so deep that it seemed not only reasonable, but also possible that a 4,000 year-old mummy COULD HAVE sat up and challenged someone to a board game. By the time he “came back” into his rational self, he could laugh, along with his friends at the absurdity of it.

Still, that moment perfectly captured why writing for children is so awesome. Kids have not yet lost the wonder and joy that comes with getting completely absorbed in other worlds and/or other times. My only regret is that we ran out of time and I didn't get to tell them the story of the traveler and the giant snake monster. Or of the wax crocodile that could come to life at his master's bidding. Or of the...

Hmmm, it's a good thing I've written a book about all those ancient tales. Now if only I could sell it!

All Wound Up for the Attack

Win a Signed Copy of Rick Riordan’s latest!

THE RED PYRAMID is filled with action, adventure and mythology, only this time, Riordan’s characters take on Egyptian gods and monsters.

Like King Midas, Riordan has the magic touch. Kids have simply gone cuckoo for his Greek myth-based LIGHTNING THIEF series and everybody is expecting this book and series to do the same.

Leave a comment letting me know what Greek or Egyptian god, goddess or monster you would want to be and you’ll be entered to win a free autographed copy of THE RED PYRAMID.

As for me, because I’ve been writing about Cleopatra VII, I want to walk like an Egyptian. I’m thinking of sticking with Shezmu, god of the underworld that crushes the heads of bad guys in a wine press.

But then again, I do like Amut the Destroyer, the crocodile-headed monster that devours your heart if you don’t pass the Weighing of the Heart test. Bastet is pretty cool, as is Anubis, the jackal-headed God of the Underworld.

I can’t decide.

Kitty what do you think? Bastet or Anub…wait, don’t walk away!

Sigh.

Doggie, what about you? Awwww, that clinches it.

Anubis wins by a lick! Good doggie.

"Thanks for Fighting! Here's your...Fly?"

Imagine you are an ancient Egyptian or Nubian warrior, returning victorious from battle. People line the streets screaming with joy upon your return.

You take a knee in front of your Pharaoh. You are choked up because finally—finally—you will receive the golden Amulet of Honor you have been dreaming about since you were a boy.

Only the best warriors earn this amulet. Is it a roaring lion? A hissing cobra? A chomping crocodile? Nope. It’s something better.

With trembling hands you take your golden ceremonial...fly.

No lie.

The highest honor for an Egyptian or Nubian warrior was a fly. Why? Turns out the flies in Egypt and in the Sudan are relentless.

They dog you until you beg for mercy. And then when you do, they call all their friends and harass you until you either die or go insane, whichever comes first.

So while to us, earning a “Fly” seems a little weird—if not downright giggle-worthy—to the ancient Egyptians and Nubians, it was recognition of a warrior’s relentless pursuit and defeat of his enemy.

Go flyboys!

PS: Thanks to Rick Riordan for mentioning learning about the Fly during the tour we did together at the fabulous Michael C. Carlos Museum on his blog last week (http://tinyurl.com/2u27cvs). How cool would it be if a fly amulet shows up in one of his books later?

Win a Private Tour of Egyptian Galleries with Rick Riordan!

Yesterday, Rick Riordan, author of the best selling Percy Jackson/Lightning Thief series, released THE RED PYRAMID, the first book in his new series about Egyptian gods. All my favorite bad-guy monsters show up in this fun, fast-paced adventure. I particularly enjoyed the monster Shezmu, He who Squeezes your Head in a Wine Press until it Explodes (but only if you’ve been bad).

I thoroughly enjoyed the book. Just one quibble: my favorite queen, Cleopatra VII, came out looking kind of crazy and harsh. Why, I ask again, does the Last Pharaoh of Egypt always end up with some sort of bad rep?

Rick is on a whirlwind book tour and will be in Atlanta this Friday, May 7. Guess who has the honor of guiding him through the Egyptian galleries at Emory University’s Michael C. Carlos Museum? Yup, yours truly. The Museum is raffling off a private tour of its galleries with Rick before his presentation at 7:00 pm. If you’re in Atlanta, it’s not too late to sign up. Just go to the Carlos Museum website: www.carlos.emory.edu.

Wait…Disney Stole from the Ancients?

Okay, maybe not stole. How ‘bout “borrowed.” Eons before Walt Disney discovered he had a thing for mice, a popular ancient story went like this:

A guy named Eucrates traveled to Egypt to learn from a famous magician. Eucrates spied the old Egyptian using a spell to make inanimate objects come alive and do his chores for him. But the magician refused to share the magic word.

One day, Eucrates snuck up on the old man and overheard it. He waited for the magician to leave, then spoke the magic word over a pestle (a rod-shaped doohickey) and commanded it to bring him water.

Eucrates was delighted to see the pestle come to life and obey, bringing vase after vase of water. Eucrates told it to stop. But it didn’t. It kept bringing more and more water. Poor Eucrates hadn’t realized there was a different word for making it revert to its inanimate form. Uh, oh.

In desperation, Eucrates cut the pestle in two. But now both halves brought water. Just as poor Eucrates faced drowning by pestle, the magician returned and restored order.

Set that to music, use brooms rather than pestles, throw in a Technicolor mouse in Dumbledore’s robes, and you’ve got The Sorcerer’s Apprentice from Disney’s Fantasia.

So, if you’ve ever wondered where Walt Disney found the inspiration for his cheesy classic, rest assured. It’s no longer a moustery. (Sorry. Couldn’t resist.)