The Woman Who Would Be King: Hatshepsut's Rise to Power in Ancient Egypt

Obviously, you can't fault a writer for admiring their subject... But, an author can definitely skew things, even about a modern focus, much less one so long ago with so many gaps in records. Ms. Cooney is definitely knowledgeable, and there's a lot to learn from this book, but she seemed to me to grasp with both hands any opportunity to give Hatchepsut praise or the benefit of the doubt. And that impartiality irritated me more and more as I went along. I get that this ruler has been unfairly maligned because of her sex, and I understand wanting to come to her defense, but going too far in the opposite direction is also a mistake. Cooney made a case that Hatshepsut, rather than Cleopatra is more deserving of our respect and memory. Arguments along the lines of 'Hatshepsut didn't make any grievous military mistakes', 'Hatshepsut didn't tie herself to any foreign men'... And it's fine to have a preference between the two, but comparing their rule is apples and oranges! Circumstances change considerably in 1500 years!!! What IS plain, is that both women were savvy, and unafraid to take the lead. And I think each would have done much the same in the other woman's shoes. Neither is perfect, but both rose above society's expectations of a woman's role and carved out a place in history. It's an impressive feat in any age! ( )

**dates are APPROXIMATE**
Kara Cooney did a fantastic at painting Hatshepsut’s life for readers.
Short and sweet, Cooney brilliantly narrates Hatshepsut’s life and rise to power in Ancient Egypt, especially during a time where, in other countries, women had absolutely no power or say in day to day life.
Because I loved this book so much, when I heard that Cooney was coming out with another book in November, I absolutely had to preorder it! ( )

It's a good thesis, but needs a good editor. So repetitious. ( )

I learned all sorts of stuff about ancient Egypt that I didn't know, and I really enjoyed the details of Hatshepsut's life even knowing the parts that had to be conjecture. I didn't like it as much as [b: Empress Dowager Cixi: The Concubine Who Launched Modern China|17857634|Empress Dowager Cixi The Concubine Who Launched Modern China|Jung Chang|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1367929789s/17857634.jpg|24258096], but if you're curious about women leaders throughout history this was a solid choice. ( )

This book is an informative and enjoyable biography that presents this period of Egyptian history with a depth well beyond what I learned in school. Cooney is upfront about the limitations of the archaeological evidence and the assumptions that Egyptologists---including herself---have made to fill in the blanks.

Cooney compares Hatshepsut's rise and reign to cultural perspectives and biases around women in power throughout history. It's an interesting biography that is relevant more than three millennia later. ( )