Ever wonder how the Bible synchronizes with ancient history, namely Egyptian history? Which Pharaoh gave Joseph his high position? Who was the Queen of Sheba that visited Solomon? Answers to those questions and more are in this book.

Unwrapping the Pharaohs by John Ashton and David Down is an attempt to look at ancient history from a Biblical perspective. I've always been interested in how history looks through the lens of Scripture. Being a public school student, I wasn't taught to see God throughout history. If I had been, it would have given more meaning and purpose, not to mention interest, to my history classes. I no doubt would have been more excited about what I was studying. If you are like me, you'll be so relieved to know this resource is available.

Mr. Ashton and Mr. Down have done their homework and brought to the homeschooling world a link that we were missing. Among the pages you'll find a rundown of every documented Pharaoh that ever ruled Egypt. The authors present these Pharaohs in the order that they are thought to have ruled according to the extra-Biblical historical records (that bring into play the widely held belief of evolutionary theory that includes millions of years). As they go through the major treasures found to be part of each Pharaoh's kingdom, they also make corrections. After telling you what exactly was found, the authors go back and tell you exactly where on God's timeline the treasures and Pharaohs should be placed. After going through the known history of ancient Egypt (which can get confusing since different historians used different names for the same person), Ashton and Downs end the book with a section on what a Biblical timeline of ancient Egypt would look like.

This book also comes with a DVD that contains three sections of more in-depth research done in Egypt that supports the premise of the book. For most of the documentary, Mr. Down is on-location in Egypt going back to the places where the original discoveries were made. He looks a bit closer and ties in his knowledge of the Bible to help answer some questions left unanswered by most archaeologists. For the most part, the DVD is very insightful and easy to follow, just like the book. However, there is one part of his discourse that seems to leave the viewer hanging. He starts to talk about a certain occurrence, but before he can finish that thought he starts another, which leads to a longer discourse of Biblical history that most Christians are aware of. I can understand going back through a Bible story for the sake of those who don't read the Bible, but I did at least expect him to go back and pick up where he left off. That never happens, and the listeners are left wondering what he was going to say. Aside from that, the DVD is a wonderful bonus that helps round out your trip back into ancient Egypt.

I highly recommend this book as a wonderful resource for Christian parents (whether homeschooling or not) to have in their library. This book helps form that all-important Biblical worldview that we in turn are teaching to our children. As the children get older, they can read the book for themselves and be encouraged that God's Word is indeed true and can be believed even down to the historical elements.

Product review by Lyria Moore, The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine, LLC, October 2007