The Golden Goblet (Newbery Library, Puffin)

This book is so well written! My 13 year old boy picked it up and couldn’t put it down until he was done. Then he brought it in the car and reads out loud it to his 3 little brothers (and me!) on long car rides. Definitely a treasure.(*we’re a protestant homeschool family)

I’m homeschooled and this was a great book to read in our curriculum! If you homeschool your kids this book would work great as a read aloud and/or a silent read. This book has enough information that it feels enticing ,interesting and makes you want to read more. However, the author doesn’t put unnecessary information in or too extensive of a vocabulary that the book gets difficult or confusing. The author also gives a very vivid imagery to the story and really transports you to ancient Egypt! You can tell the author is very knowledgeable about this time and is very passionate about learning about it. Overall this book is a great read and not too hard, or easy but is just right.

This is such an interesting book, perfect for a young person (upper elementary school) who is studying or just interested in ancient Egypt. Written from the perspective of a boy that age in that time period. In the class where i learned of this book, the kids were quite taken with the story, and i made a recording of it for some non-readers and i thoroughly enjoyed it myself! You can read a review to learn more about the actual story, but i do recommend.

We chose this to go with TGATB curriculum. It was great for helping us "see" and understand ancient Egypt in our minds. Even in church I felt like I had a better visual of ancient food, places, customs to some degree though probably not the correct era. Haha It works great as a read aloud. I think my 5 year old found the story boring though. My older kids enjoyed it but sometimes got lost with the very rich vocabulary, but I loved the vocabulary! I had to explain what was going on or ask what they thought was happening from time to time. The middle of the story felt a bit drawn out, but I'm sure it added to Ranofer's character being understood in a position in life that feels endless. The ending was clever and made us smile. Good book, glad we read it.

The Golden Goblet is an adventure packed into pages! Eloise Jarvis McGraw takes you on a trip to Thebes, Ancient Egypt, for a look into an eleven-year-old's daily life as an Egyptian. You will soon find out that Ranofer's life is a lot more action-packed than most normal Egyptians'. When gold starts disappearing from Ranofer and his friend Hequet's local goldsmith's shop, Ranofer suspects his half-brother, Gebu. Ranofer, Hequet, and Ancient, Ranofer's new friend, soon find out Gebu has done things much, much worse than this small thievery. As Ranofer discovers while solving this great mystery, true friends will help you no matter what the circumstances. This well written piece of historical fiction teaches lots about daily life in ancient Egypt. It contains honesty, trustworthiness, friendship and a great ending. This book is a blast for all ages.--Sydawesomazing,6th grader

This was one of my favorite books back when I was in Elementary School - I used to check this book out at least twice a month once I discovered it on the library shelf! I was thrilled to find it on Amazon and immediately ordered it so my children could enjoy this story as much as I did. Some reviewers complain about the violence in the story - I don't find it over the top in any way - it details what life was like (harsh at times) back in the ancient days. If you want a story that's all goodness and light, read a fairy tale! If you want a story that is historically accurate, read this book! It was turn you into a fan of all things ancient!

At what point did we start accepting child abuse as a proper story line for children? I've been thinking back to the books I enjoyed as a girl -- and I was a BIG reader -- and I can think of very few instances of child abuse in girls' literature. Sara Crewe has her ears boxed by Miss Minchin in "A Little Princess", and Amy has her hand switched in the classroom for violating the "no limes" rules, I think. That was in "Little Women" -- and although the March family was shocked when it happened, it probably should not count as child abuse.Yet here I have a Newbery book whose main child character, Ranofer, is physically tortured by his half-brother. Not content to orphan him, the author repeatedly had him whipped on the back, legs, shoulders, and beaten in the face. And also kicked. And systematically starved and robbed of his wages.I do like what the book has to say about accepting life's circumstances -- Ranofer did not enjoy the trade he was apprenticed in, and desperately wanted to become a goldsmith like his father. But a wise character told him to learn the trade and make the best of it. Another high point, the master goldsmith Zau refuses to solve Ranofer's problems for him -- he insists that Ranofer must rearrange his own life in order to come work as a goldsmith's apprentice. That's good -- keep your child understanding that he himself is the only person responsible for improving the conditions of his life.There are two clever friend characters. Ranofer himself is often depressed and helpless.5th or 6th graders. Gives a good idea for the life of crafts people and trades people in ancient Egypt. One execution scene. Foster parents and adoptive parents, you may want to pre-read.

I read this to my children ages 7-11 as part of our homeschool curriculum study about Ancient Egypt. The story was very well written. My children begged me to read it every day until we were finished. It starts out slow as it develops the characters and setting in the book; but my children nor I ever got bored. It teaches character values along with the history and descriptions. The story described Ancient Egyptian culture, landscaping, and beliefs in such detail that you almost felt like you were there. I would recommend this book to all ages from 7-90.