Egypt's golden empire - Joyce Tyldesley

Ancient Egypt in the New Kingdom (1567-1085 BC) was a civilisation at its peak. This 500-year period was the era of the temples and tombs at Karnak, Thebes and the Valley of the Kings. It was witness to the first woman to rule a country in her own right, saw the first treaty settled between two nations, encompassed the Biblical Exodus, and saw the production of the most exquisite treasure known to the modern world. Still further, the New Kingdom was a dynasty of rich and extraordinary characters: Ahmose, Hatchepsut, Nefertiti, Tutankhamen and Ramesses II.

Egypt's Golden Empire tells the story of the New Kingdom empire builders; the pharaohs and their queens. But royal history can only ever tell one side of the tale. What of the ordinary people who lived and died as Egypt struggled to found her empire? These individuals form a ghostly, almost invisible backdrop to official New Kingdom life and here, disclosed alongside the traditional history, their story is uncovered. Tying in to a landmark BBC documentary series, Joyce Tyldesley's book tells the fascinating story of this period, a story which takes in the very invention of civilisation.