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Riddle of the Nile

Name: Riddle of the Nile
Author: Deborah Nash
ISBN: 9781845074661

by Deborah Nash

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Overview

The second book in the new Made In series of riddle books, Riddle of the Nile features Baby Crocodile. His dream is to become king of the Nile, but first he must solve a baffling riddle. His search for the answer takes young readers through ancient myths and modern mosques to the Great Sphinx, the New Library of Alexandria, and other amazing sights. Based on the author's visits to Egypt, this crocodile’s-eye view of this ancient land is illustrated with collages inspired by Egyptian art. Adding to the fun are brief notes, a map of the Nile, and a Pyramid Fortune Game to make and play.

Synopsis

Children's Literature

Baby Crocodile is sure he will be King of the Nile, but first he has to solve the riddle posed by Crookedy Crocodile. His quest for the answer takes him to the Great Sphinx and the pyramids of Giza, to a frog guarding the Nilometer measuring the water level of the Nile, along the river, and to the Library at Alexandria. No one can give him the answer. A statue of Alexander blows him back to the Nile. He passes a museum, a fisherman, and a ba bird, who flies to heaven, where the Sky Goddess Nut sends him to Sobek the Crocodile God. By the time he reaches the god at the temple of Kom Ombo, Baby Crocodile is now Big Crocodile. As he recites the riddle, which is an alternate form of the traditional "As I was going to St. Ives " he suddenly knows the answer, and is King of the Nile at last. Along the bottom of the pages in smaller type is additional information about what he encounters on his way. The quest is one way to take us on a tour of key monuments and facts about ancient Egypt. Nash uses "sand from Egypt, tissue paper, oil pastel, watercolour, acrylic paint, glitter and gold foil" to compose overly simple images of the area and its people, as well as objects such as the pyramids, water wheels, and even a jet flying overhead. Our crocodile hero is assembled from several cutout shapes of green paper. There are suggestions of the ancient Egyptian origins in the stylization of the pictures, their organization, and the decorative borders. The endpapers display a map of the area with locations marked. This amusing introduction to ancient Egypt even includes instructions for a Pyramid Fortune Game.

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Editorials

Children's Literature - Ken Marantz

Baby Crocodile is sure he will be King of the Nile, but first he has to solve the riddle posed by Crookedy Crocodile. His quest for the answer takes him to the Great Sphinx and the pyramids of Giza, to a frog guarding the Nilometer measuring the water level of the Nile, along the river, and to the Library at Alexandria. No one can give him the answer. A statue of Alexander blows him back to the Nile. He passes a museum, a fisherman, and a ba bird, who flies to heaven, where the Sky Goddess Nut sends him to Sobek the Crocodile God. By the time he reaches the god at the temple of Kom Ombo, Baby Crocodile is now Big Crocodile. As he recites the riddle, which is an alternate form of the traditional "As I was going to St. Ives…" he suddenly knows the answer, and is King of the Nile at last. Along the bottom of the pages in smaller type is additional information about what he encounters on his way. The quest is one way to take us on a tour of key monuments and facts about ancient Egypt. Nash uses "sand from Egypt, tissue paper, oil pastel, watercolour, acrylic paint, glitter and gold foil" to compose overly simple images of the area and its people, as well as objects such as the pyramids, water wheels, and even a jet flying overhead. Our crocodile hero is assembled from several cutout shapes of green paper. There are suggestions of the ancient Egyptian origins in the stylization of the pictures, their organization, and the decorative borders. The endpapers display a map of the area with locations marked. This amusing introduction to ancient Egypt even includes instructions for a Pyramid Fortune Game.

Kirkus Reviews

Eager to prove his wisdom and worthiness to become King of the Nile, Baby Crocodile swims up the river in search of the answer to Crookedy Crocodile's riddle (the classic St. Ives nursery rhyme localized). He asks an assortment of objects and animals-the Great Sphinx, a cobra, a frog, a perch, a cat and the statue of Alexander the Great. After much confusion and no further ahead in his response, he finally arrives at the Temple Kom Ombo where he encounters Sobek, the "colossal Crocodile God," who tells him "there is only one simple answer." Realizing the answer, Baby Crocodile returns to the river with "a crown of lotus flowers" on his head, becoming King. As she did in Made in China (2006), Nash uses the story line to provide a tour of ancient and modern Egypt with a dual text describing the sights, culture and customs combining ancient and new settings. Mixed-media paintings imitating hieroglyphic artwork of figures in profile pose include sand from Egypt and gold foil. Factual information presented, however brief, could be enhanced with a short bibliography or suggested reading list, as Tamar Bower does in the more authentic-looking and beautiful rendition of the story, How the Amazon Queen Fought the Prince of Egypt (2005). (Picture book. 5-7)