Reviews

Romer’s elegant prose and meticulous scholarship reveal a view of pyramids and their builders unlike any other....Romer’s account of the planning and building phases of the Great Pyramid are original and insightful..... No living author has ever understood the minds and hearts of ancient Egyptians the way John Romer has. In The Great Pyramid, he takes you on journey into their mysterious world. Even if you’re not a fan of pyramids, Romer’s book is a must-have for every Egyptophile.

If you want an excellent, comprehensive overview of both the history of the pyramids and the controversies that have surrounded these great wonders of the ancient world, then this is about as good as you can get.

The Great Pyramid is awe-inspiring: the book expresses Romer's awe for the pyramid, and instills it deep within the reader. Romer realizes for the reader the complexities of inventing the ideal pyramid, such as evidence for the plans of the pyramid, drawn at a one-to-one scale on the ground surface at the Giza plateau.

Throughout, Romer's writing is impassioned: ..The Great Pyramid is a book I plan on revisiting many times in the future. The many many photographs, the depth of information and the writing style make this a perfect companion for people, like me, distant admirers of the Egyptian pyramids, seen floating in a desert mirage in our imaginations.

John Romer's book on the Great Pyramid does justice to one of the wonders of the world. I write that as someone who has spent several years working around the pyramid, following the work of the American archaeologist, George Reisner. Romer's study is of great interest and wonderful reading, and it should appeal to those with an amateur interest in ancient Egypt as much as to the professional Egyptologist.

A vast amount has been published on the pyramids, but this book offers a refreshing and distinctive approach based on sound scholarship and written in a style that often strikes a spark in the reader's imagination. One comes away reminded what an astonishing building the Great Pyramid is, out on its own in the realm of ancient Egyptian architecture, and therefore something that does not fit into the generalisations that we tend to seek.

This elegantly-written book manages to achieve the balancing act of focusing in some detail on the specific aspects of the nature, construction and functioning of the Great Pyramid, but also illuminating many aspects of Old Kingdom Egypt and ancient cultures generally. It brings to a wide audience the latest information on a venerable topic that still has a surprising amount of life and energy in it. Perhaps the greatest praise is that I would have been extremely pleased to have written it myself!