The Woman Who Would Be King

Hatshepsut's Rise to Power in Ancient Egypt

De: Kara Cooney

Narrado por: Kara Cooney

An engrossing biography of the longest-reigning female pharaoh in Ancient Egypt and the story of her audacious rise to power.

Hatshepsut - the daughter of a general who usurped Egypt's throne and a mother with ties to the previous dynasty - was born into a privileged position in the royal household, and she was expected to bear the sons who would legitimize the reign of her father’s family. Her failure to produce a male heir was ultimately the twist of fate that paved the way for her improbable rule as a cross-dressing king. At just over twenty, Hatshepsut ascended to the rank of pharaoh in an elaborate coronation ceremony that set the tone for her spectacular reign as co-regent with Thutmose III, the infant king whose mother Hatshepsut out-maneuvered for a seat on the throne. Hatshepsut was a master strategist, cloaking her political power plays in the veil of piety and sexual reinvention. Just as women today face obstacles from a society that equates authority with masculinity, Hatshepsut shrewdly operated the levers of power to emerge as Egypt's second female pharaoh.

Hatshepsut successfully negotiated a path from the royal nursery to the very pinnacle of authority, and her reign saw one of Ancient Egypt's most prolific building periods. Scholars have long speculated as to why her monuments were destroyed within a few decades of her death, all but erasing evidence of her unprecedented rule. Constructing a rich narrative history using the artifacts that remain, noted Egyptologist Kara Cooney offers a remarkable interpretation of how Hatshepsut rapidly but methodically consolidated power - and why she fell from public favor just as quickly. The Woman Who Would Be King traces the unconventional life of an almost-forgotten pharaoh and explores our complicated reactions to women in power.

©2014 Kara Cooney (P)2014 Random House Audio

Reseñas de la Crítica

"The life of Hatshepsut, Egypt's second female pharaoh, was replete with opulent living, complex royal bloodlines, and sexual energy; in short, the kind of drama that fuels Ancient Egypt's enduring appeal…From Hatshepsut’s self-perception, political prowess, and lifestyle emerge an image of the ‘ultimate working mother’ and a compelling insight into ancient gender roles." ( Publishers Weekly)

"This biography could only be based on conjecture and guesswork, but the addition of expertise makes it well worth reading. The author's Egyptology background provides the nitty-gritty of daily life and animates this king (at the time, there was no word for 'queen')…. Cooney's detective work finally brings out the story of a great woman's reign." ( Kirkus Reviews)

Just a great book

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I am on my way to Egypt--and currently fascinated with all things Egyptian--I thought this was a great book--it delved deeply into a piece of Egyptian history, while also giving enough background that it illustrated broader concepts about Egypt as well.

I typically don't care for authors reading their own work--but I thought Kara Cooney was very easy to listen to.

Good, just be careful

This book was great but it containes some content involving private parts this is not very much mostly in the first couple chapters. But other than that it is very interesting and informative.

The Woman Who Should Be Known!

Kara Cooney’s capture of the life and deeds of King Hatshepsut is extraordinary and goes far beyond most scholarly work. This book fully immerses you into the life of one of the greatest women in history, and it really makes you wonder why we are taught the failures of Cleopatra and not the successes of Hatshepsut. This book is by far the best historical work I have ever read and I find myself returning to it again and again. I fully recommend it and any lover of history, particularly the history of women in power or of Egypt, will adore this work.

Narration Choice Critical

No matter how great a book biographical info can be boring if listening to someone who has a sing song voice. This is one author who should be willing to allow another to read her works aloud.

Amazing and fascinating look at Hatshepsut

This book presents a fascinating and new perspective on the life of Hatshepsut and her rule as King. This is a biography of Hatshepsut’s life and how she came into power. Since there is first hand source material from Ancient Egypt isn’t common, Cooney is very clear that most of this is speculation and she states how she comes to these conclusions. She presents evidence, from both sides of the issue and then offers her conclusion on how she thinks things played out for Hatshepsut.

Cooney presents a fascinating look at what royal life, and life in general, was like in Egypt at this time. The long rituals to the Gods, how easy it was to get sick and die, the openness of sexuality are all things that I have rarely seen discussed in history books about Ancient Egypt, most text seem to focus on the actions and monuments left behind not how life was really like. I found this fascinating because it was all new to me and I really want to learn more about day-to-day life in Egypt.

Hatshepsut is the only female ruler to have ruled without assasination or coos, through times of peace, and ruled for a long period of time. She ruled for 22 years as Regend, then King (~1479-1458 BCE) but, she is not as well known as Cleopatra. This book presents a fascinating look at her rise to power, what she accomplished, what might have led to her taking the mantle of King, and why she was systematically erased from history.

Hatshepsut’s reign was one filled with growth for Egypt. She was a prolific building and spent her whole reign building, restoring, and updating temples and monuments to the Gods and herself. She helped professionalize the priesthoods of the Gods and gave them power. She also re-established trade routes and brought back a lot of wealth to Egypt, including Myrrh trees from Punt. Her reign was truly fascinating and it is sad that she doesn’t get very much recognition for all that she did for Egypt.
I was really fascinated with the discussion of Senenmut and Hatshepsut’s relationship. It does seem like their could have been an actual physical relationship between them since he was elevated to a high position so quickly. But since there is no actual evidence of that we will never know. I loved learning about all the different players in her reign from Senenmut, to her daughter Neferure, Thutmose III. Cooney even goes on to discuss the reign of Thutmose III after the death of Hatshepsut and how 25 years into his reign he set about removing Hatshepsut and her legacy from all of Egypt, which is why she isn’t as widely known.

Overall, this audiobook was fascinating and Dr. Cooney does a wonderful job as the narrator. I really regret not reading/listening to this book earlier. I know I will probably re-read this book in the future. I can’t wait to start Cooney’s new book, When Women Ruled The Ancient World.

fascinating and fantastic

It really took me there. the research that went into this was inspiring. the story was gripping weaved thru with fact made it even more compelling.

I felt like I was there

The story took me on a journey through Hatshepsut's life in a way that made me feel like was watching a close friend experience hardships and triumphs. I cannot imagine anyone other than Kara narrating this story.

Fantastic book!!!

Amazingly written, very interesting story! Loved it. Honestly, I couldn’t stop listening it 🙈. I think the world would greatly benefit from female rulers versus male. It’s too much testosterone and that’s the reason why the whole history contains a wars and cruelty. Men are too aggressive. They proved through history that they are bad at ruling countries. Yet we still hoping that the next guy will be better.
No woman would start a war without thinking. Women appreciate a human life cuz they create it! If women ruled the modern world we would be definitely in a better place.
Thank you for the great work!

Not enjoyable

It's not a history book, it's not a novel. I felt like the book was stuck in the middle. The characters didn't have the necessary depth of a novel and the facts where not detailed as needed to be a historical book. The constant guessing of feelings was tedious and annoying.

Better Than I Thought It Would Be

I thought this was a really good book; although it was a bit dry at times.