THE EGYPTIAN

A fascinating performance indeed by Charlton Griffin, who clearly and crisply brings alive the famous and infamous--Pharaoh Akhenaton, Queen Nefertiti, Tutankhamen, Horemheb, among others--changing tone and pace as he reads a variety of memorable and affecting characters seen through the eyes of the enigmatic royal physician Sinuhe. Ominous music foreshadows the turbulence of the period, and sound effects, such as the rustle of reeds and the lapping waves of the Nile, add mood. Characters representing a variety of ages and ranks, from nobility to village peasants and beggars, present a great breadth of Egyptian and Middle Eastern history through its leaders and evildoers--often one and the same--and make fourteenth-century Egypt real and relevant. The historical details also make contemporary Middle Eastern problems more understandable. L.C. 2005 Audie Award Finalist © AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine [Published: OCT/NOV 05]