Hieroglyphs Without Mystery: An Introduction to Ancient Egyptian Writing

Rating:
Summary: A great primer
Review: Hieroglyphs without Mystery by Karl-Theodor Zauzich.
Of the four basic texts I have on learning hieroglyphs, this book is perhaps the simplest of the four to use. It has a basic vocabulary and basic grammar building. The exercises and the flow of the book didn't appeal to me as much as Collier and Manley's, but that might be due to the fact it is translated from German (I have studied German, but not well enough, alas, to attempt to read hieroglyphs through German if I can avoid it!). This book also incorporates a transliterated system to aid learning.

I appreciated the honest in the first sentence: 'This is this first point to remember: Egyptian hieroglyphic writing was mastered in its own time by many people, most of whom were no more geniuses than present-day people (or Egyptologists) are.'

Sometimes the study of something such as hieroglyphs can be unnecessarily intimidating; this book reduces anxiety by reducing the language to easily understood components of vocabulary and grammar.

This book would make a good volume for self-study, for church or study groups to use for informal learning, and for one-semester courses for those interested in ancient history or ancient languages.

Rating:
Summary: Best intro on the subject
Review: I looked at several introductions to Egyptian and this seemed to be the easiest and clearest entry into the subject. The text by Collier/Manley is more detailed and gives more information from a structural linguistics standpoint, but I would read this book to get an understanding of the alphabet, basic symbols, diglyphs, triglyphs, phonetics, and word overall structure before tackling their book. The book also contains sample translations and exercises to test your comprehension, and it's nicely illustrated with actual inscriptions from cartouches and Tutankhamen's tomb, so you get the real stuff.

Although I have a pretty strong background in both applied and theoretical linguistics, I still found this book valuable before reading the more technical works. After reading this you'll have a good background for the more advanced books. All in all I highly recommend it as the best starter text around.

Rating:
Summary: Interesting, but without much depth
Review: If you are interested in Egyptian hieroglyphics and wish to get a quick idea of how they work,
"Hieroglyphs Without Mystery" will be a useful book for you. Perhaps the sort of volume that might
be of interest to read prior to that vacation in Egypt or the visit to the Egyptian collection
someplace. Beyond that, it is of very limited usefulness. In particular, if you are interested in
actually learning hieroglyphics in any serious manner, this book will be of minor or no use and
is best bypassed for other texts. The hieroglyphic vocabulary is thin and many of the basic concepts
of the language are never explored. If you have to know that your owl before the viper needs a reed
leaf to mean "in it", but does not need one when it is before "pr" (house) to mean "in the house",
this book will not be the one to tell you. On the positive side, the book does present some very
nice photographic examples of artifacts with the translations of their text broken down by
line/phrase. For this reason only, it may be of more than passing interest to a student of
hieroglyphs.

In summary, if you want to really learn hieroglyphs and middle Egyptian, other books are more
appropriate. If you want a quick read and are not intent on a real understanding in depth, this
book will fill your need.

Rating:
Summary: A very easy beginner's book
Review: If you expect to be able to read hieroglyphs, then you'll be disappionted in this book. But if you need something to start with, if you want a closer look at the "alphabet" of hieroglyphs, and a first look at Egyptian grammar - then this is a great book. I do suspect though that it is better in German, and is also more appealing to Europeans than to others because of the author's methods of teaching (decidedly European). The translator has done a good job, but still, the general feel of the book is very German. The exercises are quite few, too.
I give this four stars anyway, because one thing that is really good with this book is that it isn't hard to follow. At all.

Rating:
Summary: A very easy beginner's book
Review: If you expect to be able to read hieroglyphs, then you'll be disappionted in this book. But if you need something to start with, if you want a closer look at the "alphabet" of hieroglyphs, and a first look at Egyptian grammar - then this is a great book. I do suspect though that it is better in German, and is also more appealing to Europeans than to others because of the author's methods of teaching (decidedly European). The translator has done a good job, but still, the general feel of the book is very German. The exercises are quite few, too.
I give this four stars anyway, because one thing that is really good with this book is that it isn't hard to follow. At all.

Rating:
Summary: primarily for travelers, students or Egyptophiles
Review: In this book, the author presents the basic grammar rules needed to read and learn common hieroglyphs. Exercises and hieroglyphic inscriptions are included to practice the material learned. The answer-key to the exercises is available as well. An interesting presentation of the hieroglyphic language, this book is mostly aimed at travelers or museum visitors who wish to read Ancient Egyptian art. For those who are most serious in pursuing their linguistic studies, the author has provided a list of books to consult. Well illustrated in color, it is all in all a recommended book for students or Egyptophiles.

Rating:
Summary: Very Basic
Review: While this book is easy to read and entertaining, it doesn't provide much insight into the structure of the Egyptian language. It mostly teaches the meaning and vocalization of a few signs, and provides some examples of how these signs would be combined into an inscription. This book would be good for people who are curious about the hieroglyphs, and want to learn the real basics. Anyone with a deeper interest in the Egyptian language/culture would probably find Collier/Manley introduction to the hieroglyphs more helpful.