This story is about a young girl who lives with her aunt and uncle in a province of ancient Egypt during Hatshepsut's rule. When Maia discovers that her uncle is stealing grain from the temple, she must decide whether or not to turn him in. Her choice takes her on a wild adventure that eventually brings her to the feet of queen Hatshepsut!
I loved this story because it really incorporated a lot of details about what life might have been like in ancient Egypt. I found myself thinking, "This would be a good place to have students create a mental image of what is being described", or "Wow, I didn't know that most people slept on the roof of their house during this time period". The author, Ann Turner, collaborated with Catharine Roehrig, the Assistant Curator for the Egyptian Collection at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, to ensure that the story contained historically accurate details.
Because we have been focusing on reading strategies in my Elementary Reading and Language Arts Curriculum and Instruction class, I could hear one part of my brain processing where I would want to stop with my students and point out different strategies they could use. The story starts with a flashback, and when you reach the end of chapter one, it is necessary to go back and verify that you are now reading about a part of the story that happened after the flashback, because it is not instantly apparent.
