Life in Egypt Under Roman Rule

For all who are longing for the simple life of yesterday this excellent and document based book gives a first introduction how life two thousand years ago really was. Also for the non scientific reader a sketch into times long gone but nevertheless interesting in its own. I recommend it to all the nostalgics who think the the problems of today (beginning with bad neighbors and ending with the taxman) are something new.

This is my favorite Egyptian history book. Lewis in one small volume brings Egypt during the period of Roman rule to life in the pages in front of you. The book draws from thousands of papyrus documents collected in Egypt over the years. As you might expect, these mostly deal with the minutia of daily life, contracts and prayers, polemics and taxes, and Lewis's book uses theses to tell his story. The book is highly readable, enjoyable, and I recomend it to any one with an interest in any period in Egypt (after all, how much did the Nile change between 1000 BC and 300 AD).