Why am I passionate about this?

My love of history began at a young age, when I first read The Usborne Encyclopedia of World History, one of the books featured below. Reading that book, I felt a deep appreciation for the past that has lasted ever since. When I visited the Temple of Dendur at the Met Museum, I felt mesmerized by the mysterious symbols covering its walls, sparking a fascination with ancient Egypt.


I wrote

Book cover of Be a Scribe!: Working for a Better Life in Ancient Egypt

What is my book about?

This is an extraordinary translation of a papyrus from ancient Egypt’s Middle Kingdom era, written by myself and my co-authors,…

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The books I picked & why

Book cover of Egyptian Hieroglyphs for Complete Beginners

Michael Hoffen Why did I love this book?

If you want to learn the language carved on tombs and inside pyramids all over Egypt, you should start here! This book will take you through a wide variety of Egyptian inscriptions, teaching you something new (the different kinds of signs, word order, and even the numbering system) with each one.

Along the way, there are countless opportunities for practice in the beautifully arranged and formatted book.

By Bill Manley,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Egyptian Hieroglyphs for Complete Beginners as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

An original and accessible approach to learning hieroglyphs, written by an experienced teacher and author.

This is the first guide to reading hieroglyphs that begins with Egyptian monuments themselves. Assuming no knowledge on the part of the reader, it shows how to interpret the information on the inscriptions in a step-by-step journey through the script and language of ancient Egypt.

We enter the world of the ancient Egyptians and explore their views on life and death, Egypt and the outside world, humanity and the divine. The book draws on texts found on some thirty artifacts ranging from coffins to stelae…


Book cover of The Usborne Encyclopedia of World History

Michael Hoffen Why did I love this book?

This book has been my favorite ever since I was a small child—in fact, without the passion for history that this book sparked, I don’t think my book would exist today. Throughout the book, drawings of landscapes, cutaway houses, battle scenes, or people abound.

Poring over those pages, one feels transported to an earlier age—a time when Athenian merchants hawked their goods at the foot of the Acropolis, when intrepid Polynesians sailed far across the crystal-blue Pacific, and when Viking warriors raided villages around Europe.

Simply put, the book is a time machine.

By Fiona Chandler, Jane Bingham, Sam Taplin

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Usborne Encyclopedia of World History as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 8, 9, 10, and 11.

What is this book about?

Tracing the history from the Big Bang to the Twenty-First Century, this comprehensive encyclopedia includes all the major civilizations, rulers and events in world history, and paints a picture of everyday life over thousands of years. Fabulous illustrations, photos, maps and a 12,000 year timechart and over 200 links to recommended websites this a valuable resource tool that is guaranteed to add an extra dimension to school work.


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Book cover of The River of Eternity

The River of Eternity By Bruce Balfour,

1184 BCE. Ramesses III, who will become the last of the great pharaohs, is returning home from battle. He will one day assume the throne of the Egyptian empire, and the plots against him and his children have already started. Even a god can die.

Ray was raised with the…

Book cover of A Little History of the World

Michael Hoffen Why did I love this book?

Read this book to get a glorious sweep of human history told like a fireplace story. Beginning with prehistoric man and progressing through to the fall of the Soviet Union, this book is the definitive “narrative of the human race” (as told by Booklist).

Ben Schott from The Observer said it best: “One feels as if Gombrich is guiding one through time with a grandfatherly gleam in his eyes.”

By E. H. Gombrich, Clifford Harper (illustrator),

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked A Little History of the World as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 13, 14, 15, and 16.

What is this book about?

The international bestseller: E. H. Gombrich's sweeping history of the world, for the curious of all ages

"All stories begin with 'Once upon a time.' And that's just what this story is all about: what happened, once upon a time." So begins A Little History of the World, an engaging and lively book written for readers both young and old. Rather than focusing on dry facts and dates, E. H. Gombrich vividly brings the full span of human experience on Earth to life, from the stone age to the atomic age. He paints a colorful picture of wars and conquests;…


Book cover of Incredible History: Lost Worlds Brought Back to Life

Michael Hoffen Why did I love this book?

If The Usborne Encyclopedia of World History is a time machine, then this book does not just bring you to the past; it allows you to interact with it. Arranged in alternating couplets are modern photographs of what a place looks like today, followed by highly realistic three-dimensional illustrations of what the spot must have looked like at its prime (on the next page).

Given this royal treatment includes sites ranging from Egypt’s pyramids, Greece’s Olympic Games, Pompeii moments before its destruction, the Great Wall of China defending an attack, and even a Western frontier town.

By DK,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Incredible History as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 9, 10, 11, and 12.

What is this book about?

Imagine if you could travel back in time and walk the streets of the past. Where would you go first?

Incredible History turns back time to reveal realistic reconstructions of the most incredible locations and exciting moments in history. You'll feel the roar of the crowd at the ancient Olympic Games, walk the ramparts of the Great Wall of China and sail on the Titanic.

Each story begins with an archaeological site. You'll learn when and how it was discovered, and what it teaches us about how the people who lived at the site might have spent their days. Then,…


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Book cover of A Last Serenade for Billy Bonney

A Last Serenade for Billy Bonney By Mark Warren,

In this deeply researched novel of America's most celebrated outlaw, Mark Warren sheds light on the human side of Billy the Kid and reveals the intimate stories of the lesser-known players in his legendary life of crime. Warren's fictional composer and Santa Fe journalist, John Blessing, is assigned to report…

Book cover of Mornings on Horseback: The Story of an Extraordinary Family, a Vanished Way of Life and the Unique Child Who Became Theodore Roosevelt

Michael Hoffen Why did I love this book?

David McCullough is one of my favorite authors of history, and Mornings on Horseback is, in my opinion, one of his best works.

McCullough introduces us to the young Theodore Roosevelt, from early childhood to early adulthood. Born to a Southern mother and a father who would later contribute heavily to the Union cause, he grew up in a mansion in New York City but spent considerable time ranching in the Badlands of North Dakota.

Teddy Roosevelt was a fascinating man with contradictions and character, the perfect subject for a masterful biography.

By David McCullough,

Why should I read it?

4 authors picked Mornings on Horseback as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The National Book Award–winning biography that tells the story of how young Teddy Roosevelt transformed himself from a sickly boy into the vigorous man who would become a war hero and ultimately president of the United States, told by master historian David McCullough.

Mornings on Horseback is the brilliant biography of the young Theodore Roosevelt. Hailed as “a masterpiece” (John A. Gable, Newsday), it is the winner of the Los Angeles Times 1981 Book Prize for Biography and the National Book Award for Biography. Written by David McCullough, the author of Truman, this is the story of a remarkable little…


Explore my book 😀

Book cover of Be a Scribe!: Working for a Better Life in Ancient Egypt

What is my book about?

This is an extraordinary translation of a papyrus from ancient Egypt’s Middle Kingdom era, written by myself and my co-authors, Dr. Christian Casey and Dr. Jen Thum. I became fascinated by the text, known as The Instruction of Khety, when I learned that it tells the tale of a teenage boy living almost 4,000 years ago—Pepi. 

Pepi wonders what career path he should choose, an important matter still contemplated today by millions of teenagers forty centuries later. His father Khety takes him on a long journey up the Nile to enroll him in a school far away from home, where Pepi will learn to read and write. This tale of a teenage boy in ancient Egypt shows readers that working for a living has never been easy! 

Book cover of Egyptian Hieroglyphs for Complete Beginners
Book cover of The Usborne Encyclopedia of World History
Book cover of A Little History of the World

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