Product Description
The best mystery of Ancient Egypt for younger children!
At any time and in any place, when there is a mystery to be solved, a ten-year-old boy will want to have a hand in it. So it was with Kaffe, an Egyptian boy of long ago. With his friend Sari, a slave-girl, Kaffe had many adventures—the harvest feast, the fight of the bulls, the flood. Then came the mystery of the pyramid’s missing jewels and a dark night when Kaffe, his father, and Sari set out to catch the thief.
This wonderful book had been out of print for years. We’re thrilled to bring it back and make it available for a new generation of students to enjoy!
- Gentle, Yet Exciting, Mystery—No murders or grizzly mummy stories here. Readers are eased into the mystery of the missing jewels with some clues and characters among the first chapters, then the excitement builds as they set out to catch the thief.
- Appropriate—Deals with some of the potentially sordid details of this ancient culture in a manner totally appropriate for young children. It mentions some of the Egyptian gods and beliefs about death as part of the story, but does not dwell on them or sensationalize them.
- Comprehensive—Masterfully weaves many aspects of Ancient Egypt into the story line: homes, meals, feasts, slaves, architecture, Nile River, transportation, trades, geography, climate, clothing, social classes, temple, palace, pharaoh, entertainment, annual flood, agriculture, shadufs, currency, pyramids, tomb robbers, neighboring cultures, farming, and more!
- Illustrated—The beautiful pen and ink drawings do as much to help children learn about Ancient Egypt as the story does. Wonderfully illustrated by Dorothy Bayley Morse.
- Award-Winning—Written by Ruth Fosdick Jones and originally published in 1950, this book won the Jack and Jill Prize Contest.
- Recommended—Listed as a suggested resource in the SCM Curriculum Guide. Used as the main living book for younger children (grades 1–3) in the Ancient Egypt study of History/Geography/Bible Module 1. Daily lesson plans are available in Genesis through Deuteronomy & Ancient Egypt: A Family Study Handbook.
Krista – :
My girls (6 & 9)loved this book, and could hardly wait to finish the book. It really made this part of history come alive for them. Thank you for making it available.
Rossi – :
Our family read this book out loud together during our study of Ancient Egypt. We looked forward to starting a new chapter each day. As the plot thickens my girls (4,8 & 11) would cheer for more so I would have to read another chapter during our lunchtime. We got a nice idea of the how things worked and the life style during those times. Thank you for the recommendation… we had fun going on the adventure!
Carey – :
My daughter loved this book and wants to read it again! It was a wonderful way to learn about the culture. Wish I had a whole library full of books this good.
Robin – :
Wow…we just started reading this book today….my boys, 7 and 10, are enthralled by it!
Lynda – :
Goodness gracious!!! My sixth grade teacher read this aloud to my class 43 years ago!! I STILL remember it…and thought it was out of print. THANK you!
HomeschoolScrapbook – :
What a treasure! My son 10 and daughter 8 LOVED this as much as I did! They BEGGED for me to read more chapters, but I wanted it to last and last. What fun we had together trying to guess what would happen next! This made our “favorites” list. Thank you so much for offering it here at SCM!
James – :
As a child I read this in a serialized version in “Jack and Jill” magazine. I was mesmerized and couldn’t wait for each part. Not sure what year it was, must have been around 1952-3 – wow! almost 60 years ago!
Sonya Shafer – :
That sounds about right, James. Ruth Fosdick Jones received the Jack and Jill Magazine award for the best manuscript submitted in 1951. It’s a wonderful story!
Lydia – :
Great story! my children 5 through 13 enjoyed it very much. What an inspiring book! Thank you!!
KCMommy – :
I just pre-read this book before reading it to my children. I LOVED it! Based on the reviews, I thought it would be good but I was blown away. I’m very glad I purchased it and look forward to reading it to my kids. Excellent book!
Monica (verified owner) – :
My 6 year old son thought this was fantastic. While he struggles to narrate orally, he and his younger sister built pyramids and played “Kaffe and Sari” for hours, with all of the elements of the plot included!
It is a clear, straightforward story, perfect for elementary level!