The Sorrow of Archaeology 
Martin, R.
Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 2005. ISBN 0826337252.
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| This novel is a reflection on the meaning of archaeology by the author who lives in the Mesa Verde region. See also our review. 272 pages. |
Before Adam
London, J.
London: Hesperus Press, 2005. ISBN 1843910977.
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| In this book first published in 1906, London imagines the mid-Pleistocene as populated by three distinct hominids: the Tree People, a simian group; the Folk, with rudimentary material culture; and the Fire People, who have tamed flames. See also our review. 128 pages. |
Serpent on the Crown
Mertz, B.
New York: HarperCollins, 2005. ISBN 0060591781.
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| Once again Elizabeth Peters brings an exotic world of adventure, intrigue, and danger to vivid life, in a tale as exciting, mysterious, and powerful as ancient Egypt. See also our article on the author. 368 pages. |
Guardian of the Horizon
Peters, E.
New York: William Morrow, 2004. ISBN 0066214718.
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| The sixteenth Amelia Peabody mystery continues the adventures of the fictional Peabody and her husband, Radcliffe Emerson, an eminent Egyptologist known for his outspokenness, which has earned him the sobriquet Abu Shitaim, or Father of Curses. See also our review. 416 pages. |
Conversations With the High Priest of Coosa 
Hudson, C.
Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2003. ISBN 0807854212.
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| This "fictionalized ethnography" recounts imaginary meetings between an elder from one of the biggest North American chiefdoms and a sixteenth-century Spanish priest. Hudson makes the most of the opportunity to weave an engaging tale filled with accounts of the ancient legends and ritual of the Southeastern United States. 248 pages. |
Eagle in the Snow
Breem, W.
New York: Rugged Land LLC, 2003. ISBN 1590710118.
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| This reprint of the 1970 edition is a good place to start for anyone who wants to imagine life at the time Rome was starting to collapse. The author's vivid battle descriptions provide a picture of a man attempting to prevent a human tidal wave from overwhelming the Roman Empire. See also our review. 320 pages. |
Pompeii
Harris, R.
New York: Random House, 2003. ISBN 0679428895.
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| This book recreates the Pompeii of almost 2,000 years ago during one of the most famous natural disasters of all time. Focusing on the characters of an engineer and a scientist, it offers an original perspective on the Roman world. See also our review. 304 pages. |
Rabinal Achi
Tedlock, D.
Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003. ISBN 0195139747.
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| A translation of the original Quiche Maya tale of Rabinal Achi. The translation includes years of research as well as analysis of the live performance of the play. A work of classic Mayan literature, Rabinal Achi gives insight into the pre-Columbian Mayan civilization. 361 pages. |
After Greece
Bakken, C.
Kirksville: Truman State University Press, 2001. ISBN 1931112002.
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| This book of poems--both an account of travel and a collection of ecstatic lyrics--have their beginnings in Thessaloniki, Greece, where author Christopher Bakken lived from 1992 until 1994. The poems describe crowded sites, restored monuments, and places where the realities of the ancient world are still alive. 62 pages. |
Aztec Blood
Jennings, G.
New York: Tom Doherty Associates, 2001. ISBN 0312862512.
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| This third book in the series Aztec is the story of a beggar boy known as Cristóbal the Bastardo, a Mestizo who is related to both Spanish and Aztec royalty. After learning to read and write, Cristóbal leaves his city and begins a quest for self-discovery, learning his significance to the future of New Spain, the former Aztec Empire, and its people. 384 pages. |
