Alan H. Gardiner (1879–1963)

This is the most comprehensive Middle Egyptian grammar (save perhaps Borghouts, which I have not looked at in any detail). It is very easy to read, contains a number of excellent exercises, has comprehensive cross-references, and is well indexed. It is quite old - see, e.g., chapter 26 of Allen's Middle Egyptian for an outline of the anachronisms of Gardiner.

Some people may find this a lttle out-dated, but it is the book that got me into Ancient Egypt. Easy to read, informative and written by a real 'giant' of Egyptology.

This had a good overview of all the dynasties of Egypt. It includes information from several sources and points out places where various scholars have differing opinions on names and time periods. Recommended to anyone interested in Egyptian history.

Gardiner's most important contribution to the study of Ancient Egyptian language was his charting of the hieroglyphs into classes based on the item portrayed in the glyph. A must-have book for the serious student of hieroglyphs.