Do you know that a group of historians is called and Argumentation? That’s so true as historians have to piece together what happened in the past from a huge range of clues and they don’t always interpret the results in the same way.

History has a reputation for being boring, so this book examines the whole of Ancient Egypt in a way aimed at getting reluctant readers motivated to read. Covering pre-dynastic Egypt right through to its integration into the Roman empire it talks about the well known and the not so well known facts, as well as examining various myths from the period to debate what actually happened and what is possibly more fiction. It also reminds us that some of the most effective pharaohs were women – so a nod to the role that women have played in history.
There is a useful timeline at the beginning and their ‘Chaos meter’ which charts how calm or chaotic the period was. It’s also useful to remember that for people living through these times, as far as they were concerned these were ‘modern’ times and it is only with the hindsight and knowledge of the past that allows us to group decades and centuries into labelled ‘periods’. Who knows how our current modern times will be labelled by the historians of the future??

Written for primary aged children, it is not a style that I find easy to read but should appeal to those who find it boring to follow a straight text. Fans of fiction such as Tom Gates, Wimpy Kid, Big Nate etc. should find the style stimulating and they learn a lot along the way. (I learnt a few things myself). However the physical layout is unlikely to work for children with dyslexia, so if you want a history book for this segment of readers, you need to find something with a more suitable layout and type font..

As a primary school teacher with a History Degree, I knew that I needed to read this book and I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it! So much so that I read it all in one sitting, forgetting all else around me until I had made my way chaotically through history!
The whirlwind through Egyptian history was humorous, factual and explained perfectly for primary school children to be able to completely follow the timeline and gain a good insight of key events of the time. There were useful diagrams throughout and they added to the narrative as it developed and I really liked the addition of little notes in the margins with awesome extra facts! I loved the addition of the myth-busting as we made our way through and it shows the importance of how we shouldn’t always take the information accepted previously as being set in stone; there is always more to learn!

This was a brilliant book and I will be highly recommending it to colleagues as well as my pupils to read. I will definitely be on the look out for more of these books from Greg Jenner - this was outstanding!

Thank you to NetGalley, Greg Jenner and Walker Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book is so great read! First of all it has a lot of information even an adult like me finds interesting. Secondly it is well written and so understandable that I think children can read it without problems. Illustrations and the explanations by the expert are a great addition to the text. I hope it will be possible to get this book in German too so I can use it for my Year 5 students!

A wild rollercoaster ride recapping the entire history of Ancient Egypt!

This fabulously presented fact file makes learning about the hectic history of Ancient Egypt great fun. Greg Jenner’s humourous retelling of the various eras, key figures, facts and legends is accompanied by superb sketches and let’s not forget an ‘Accuracy Alarm’ provided by Dr Campbell Price, Chief Boffin of All Things Ancient Egyptian at the Manchester Museum.

With 170+ Pharoahs, 3 seasons (dictated by the flooding of the Nile), Ancient Egyptian history dates back to the first Pharoah – Narmer – in 3000 BCE and his victory over Lower Egypt. The Narmer Palette, telling us about this historical event, is a prized possession of Egypt and never leaves its home.
Polytheism, Top Gods and the Best of the Rest tell us all about the main players in Egypt, and the Pyramid Scheme explains how these burial places for pharaohs and places of worship were built, initially by trial and error – if at first your pyramid doesn’t succeed, build it and build it and build it again! Greg covers the myths surrounding pyramids – were they in fact built by aliens, are they full of booby traps and do they curse those who enter them?

Famines, Floods and Mummies, Hieroglyphics, The Rosetta Stone and Tutmania are all explored.

Wars, deaths, coups, cat worship and a fictional diary which Cleopatra might have written had us in hysterics and this whistlestop tour of such a key civilization in our history is brilliantly memorable and perfect for fans of Horrible Histories age 8-12.

In his new non-fiction children’s book, Greg Jenner, writer and presenter of the hit BBC history podcast ‘You’re dead to me’ takes the reader on an action packed and chaotic romp through the whole of Ancient Egyptian history. However, he’s not doing it alone, Dr Campbell Price, curator of Egypt and Sudan at Manchester Museum is on hand to help navigate this messy world with scribbles in the margin, myth busters and ‘accuracy alarms’ to challenge Greg’s ‘facts’.
As a museum professional myself, with experience of running Egyptian school visits, it is great to see a new non-fiction children’s chapter book which endeavours to cover the whole of the history in chronological order starting at the very beginning. Over the years I’ve found that children often struggle to grasp the concept of time or how long ago something happened. In the case of Egyptian history, it actually goes back 7000 years and a lot can change in that time (as Greg tells his readers)! Not many books just go through the whole of history (well Ancient Egyptian history) from start to finish. By breaking each era down into short chapters, the reader can work their way through without feeling overwhelmed or even dip into the periods that interest them.
Greg doesn’t shy away from including lots of dates and period names, but by including a mini timeline at the beginning of every chapter with a ‘you are here’ marker the reader is quickly able to remind themselves of where they are in the story of Egypt. Also, the use of a ‘chaos meter’ at the chapter heading (an illustration showing how chaotic the period of time is) is a fun addition and could be another way for kids to remember what happens in different time periods by how chaotic it was.
Greg’s style is informal, and chatty which is great for a young readership and each chapter slowly brings us forward in time. I especially loved the use of cartoon illustrations, fact files, fake adverts, news stories and other comedic insertions throughout which help bring the history right up to date and more relatable for young readers. Rikin Parekh’s illustrations really lift the text and make it fun. Greg also skips over some periods which would bore the readers by including a ‘fast forward’ summary of what happened. In many ways it is very reminiscent of Horrible Histories (Greg Jenner having been a writer on the BBC show).
I thought it was interesting that he chooses to write in the present tense, as if we’re actually travelling through time with him as our guide. However, while this can be very immersive and makes the reader feel like they are there, I think occasionally it could get a bit confusing for young readers as he talks about Ancient Egypt as if it was now.
Interestingly, while there are lots of comedic and fun cartoon insertions and interactive elements which appeal to all ages of children, the book is clearly aimed at a slightly older audience- 8-9+. For children who already have an interest in Ancient Egypt it is great, as it goes into lots of detail about the main periods, life and lots of lesser-known areas too. It is perfect for children who want to find out as much as they can about a subject.
As the book goes on, the history of Ancient Egypt becomes very chaotic and messy (hence the book title!) and Greg does a great job of putting the reader at ease when things get confusing. However, I often had to re-read sections of text to get my head around what was happening, and I was especially surprised to find some quite long sentences and long paragraphs. Use of different styles of text, the chatty tone and Campbell’s scribbles in the margins do help to break this up though and help the reader understand any complicated words etc. However, I think these parts may lose the interest of some readers who will instead just flick through and search for the comic bits. It is great for young readers who are avid history fans though, or maybe even to read together with a parent who can help navigate these sections.
I particularly loved that Greg is keen to show the reader that often what we know about history is not always 100% true and often there are two arguments as to what happened. The insertions and corrections from Dr Campbell Price help show the young readers that history is always up for debate. I thought this was a great way to introduce historical discussion and debates to a young reader and a good jumping off point to explore the history further. It is very much like what Greg does on his ‘You’re dead to me’ podcast but aimed at a young audience.
Overall, I found the book to be very enjoyable. Perfect for slightly older kids (or adults!) with an interest in history and who want to know ‘what happened next?’ I will be watching with interest to see how it is received and look forward to the next book in the series!

The latest offering from Horrible Histories self-proclaimed "chief nerd" is a fun and educational romp from pre-dynastic Egypt to Roman times. It has Jenner's trademark wit all the way through so children take in a huge amount of knowledge while thinking they've just spent the last half hour laughing at jokes about bodily functions. The fun illustrations add to the accessibility of the book. Highly recommended.

I have so far found it hard to find history books that are suitable for UKS 2 students who are not ready for full-on history books quite yet. This one is just perfect for them. There is enough information packed into this not-too-lengthy-or-wordy book to inspire further interest in the topic. It is written with lots of humour to keep children engrossed. A perfect history book for KS 2 students.

Totally Chaotic History: Ancient Egypt Gets Unruly by Greg Jenner

This book explores ancient Egypt from the predynastic era right through to the Romans.

I love how this book is presented in a fun and informative way for kids to learn from and enjoy. It is written in an easy way to read and follow. It is funny and also has some gross moments for the kids to read about. The illustrations add another level to this book, they are well drawn and appealing to children.

Both my sons loved listening to this book being read and also had a go at reading some themselves. I would say that they both found it hard with the pronunciations of the names and places, as to did I. Even with that they both found this book a fun read, and it held their interest throughout.

I would recommend this book to anyone one who has an interest in history or just wants something fun to read.