The Library of Alexandria

January 1, 2004
Gr 5-9-In this well-organized and thorough resource, Trumble delves into the people, legends, and politics surrounding the creation and ruin of the largest library in the ancient world. The chapter on collecting books details its methods of acquisition, which ranged from payment to thievery. A section on Alexandria's competitor, Pergamum, located in Asia Minor, provides an opportunity to describe and contrast the use of parchment and papyrus. Much attention is paid to the scholars who utilized the library and their achievements. For example, Eratosthenes calculated the circumference of the Earth. Herophilus practiced dissection and probably vivisection, adding much to contemporary understanding of the function of human organs and systems. Back matter includes maps, the Ptolemy family tree, and a description of sites in ancient Alexandria. The full-color, single-page illustrations, rendered in watercolor and gouache, are uneven. Marshall is more successful at depicting the flow of fabric, architectural ornamentation, and inanimate objects than in capturing the proportions and physicality of the human body. The modern-day Bibliotheca Alexandrina, an institution inspired by its ancient predecessor, is given only a brief mention. These flaws notwithstanding, this book is a unique and timely celebration of the age-old passion for and preservation of ideas.-Wendy Lukehart, Washington DC Public Library

Copyright 2003 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

November 15, 2003
Gr. 5-7. It's hard to find an untouched topic in children's nonfiction, but this comes close. The library at Alexandria was the most famous in the ancient world, a center of learning, a place where much original research in astronomy, anatomy, mathematics, and science was done. Trumble begins with Alexander, who wanted to build a great city in Egypt, but died before it was finished. It was one of his successors who built the library and stocked it with a vast collection of books, some obtained through nefarious means. Succeeding chapters describe the research done at the site, the most interesting, perhaps, being the work of Herophilus, who became an expert in human anatomy by practicing vivisection in order to learn more. Some of the attractively illustrated, full-page color paintings are full of activity; others are more stilted, simply showing people in discussion. In either case, however, the art has a younger feel than the strong, interesting text. A useful support for curriculum.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2003, American Library Association.)

January 1, 2004
This book relates how Ptolemy I Soter and his adviser Demetrius built the Library of Alexandria to aid the city's many scholars. Accurate information, though not tightly focused, is dispensed adequately and illustrated in watercolor and gouache. Maps and a genealogical chart are appended. Reading list. Bib., glos., ind.

(Copyright 2004 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)