Tombs, Temples and Hieroglyphs by Barbara Mertz

Tombs, Temples and Hieroglyphs by Barbara Mertz is a very good introductory history of Egypt. While Mertz is quite a respectable Egyptologist her book is definitly written for the popular audience. She assumes that you have very little knowledge and so gives a nice overview of the complete history, paying attention to the bits she finds most interesting and filling in the different theories, past and present, relating to the events being discussed. She has a very enjoyable style, somewhere between Tony Robinson and Simon Schauma, which can be a bit gossipy and quite amusing at times. Because of this she is able to bring out the humanity of the people she's discussing, whether they are ancient egyptians or modern egyptologists. The book was written about 40 years ago, so it's not the most up to date work, a lot of Egyptian archeology has been uncovered in the meantime, but it is still a very enjoyable read. She covers all the important events and has a whole chapter on Queen Hatepshuet. (Who, like Empress Wu, was also rumored to have slept with her architect.) The book covers the early stone age, down to the conquest by the greeks. Definitly a good starting point and probably a fun referesher for those already familiar with Egypt's history.