Secrets in the sand

cWhen I was a little girl, I wanted to be a princess.

As I grew up, and read voraciously, I became obsessed with history and at that moment I wanted to become an archeologist. I daydreamed about working in the Valley of Kings and - you bet! - discovering that one grave which had all kinds of valuables. Something like the biggest archeological discovery of the age.

I read a lot about Egypt - art books and novels. My long time favorite in the historical novel genre righ tthen was Mara, Daughter of the Nile by Eloise McGraw. I don't know how many times I borrowed this book from the local library, but at a given moment the book disappeared. It could not found anymore - probably someone had borrowed it and not returned. I tried to find the novel in the bookstores but they did not sell English books in those years (the 1970s).

Can you imagine how happy I was when the internet came into existence and I discovered the Amazon shop? The American shop sold a new print of McGraw's book, and of course I ordered it. It cost me quite a lot, because you have to pay custom fees on imports from the USA. But now it's in my library and I cherish it.

It is supposed to be a kid's book, but even now I still like to read it. Btw, lots of childrens books are better written than a lot of the today novels for adults.

I also like to see films about Egypt, like The Mummy or Jewel of the Nile. I like the kind of movie in which a lot of action goes along with historical finds.

                          
Nowadays, I enjoy reading the Egypt novels of Paul Doherty, which are set during the reign of Queen Hatshepsut. I hope Steve Berry will set one of Cotton Malone's adventures in Egypt. And of course, also Barbara Erskine has novels in which Egyptian mysteries appear.

I did not become an archeologist. When I reached the age to decide what to study, there was not much demand for archeologists. So I picked languages instead and became a high school teacher. But because I like history, I can often mix it into my lessons and I do hope the students will take something along.

I still read every article about archeological finds with interest and still dream about finding that hidden grave!