These books are exceptional. Their author has gathered and translated here not only the texts of the Old Kingdom (a gigantic work in itself) but also those of the pyramid of King Aba of the 8th Dynasty (a copy from the end of the Old Kingdom but almost completely ignored in studies of the Pyramid Texts), of six of the most important funerary monuments of the 12th to the 18th Dynasty, and finally of eleven tombs belonging to the period of the 25th to the 27th Dynasty. For specialists, the presence of the transliteration opposite the translation gives the opportunity to check the original text without having to consult rare and often inaccessible volumes. In view of their age, their poetry, and their reflection of the Egyptian mind, the Pyramid Texts constitute a major source for all who want to understand the history of thought. There is no doubt that these books will serve as excellent guide. - James P. Allen, Wilbour Professor of Egyptology and Chair, Department of Egyptology and Ancient Western Asian Studies, Brown University