Between Two Rivers

Ancient Mesopotamia and the Birth of History

By: Moudhy Al-Rashid

Narrated by: Moudhy Al-Rashid

Thousands of years ago, in a part of the world we now call ancient Mesopotamia, people began writing things down for the very first time.

What they left behind, in a vast region between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, preserves leaps in human ingenuity. But they also capture breathtakingly intimate, raw, and relatable moments, like a dog's paw prints as it accidentally stepped into fresh clay, or the imprint of a child's teeth.

In Between Two Rivers, historian Dr. Moudhy Al-Rashid reveals what these ancient people chose to record about their lives. We find a lullaby to soothe a baby, countless receipts for beer, and the messy writing of preschoolers. We meet an enslaved person negotiating their freedom, an astronomer tracing the movement of the planets, a princess who may have created the world's first museum, and a working mother struggling with "the juggle" in 1900 BCE.

Millennia ago, Mesopotamians saw the world's first cities, the first writing system, early seeds of agriculture, and groundbreaking developments in medicine and astronomy. With breathtaking intimacy and grace, Al-Rashid brings their lives―with all their anxieties, aspirations, and intimacies―vividly close to our own.

©2025 Moudhy Al-Rashid (P)2025 Hodder and SToughton, Limited

Wonderfully Entertaining and Informative

I don't know when I last read or listened to a book about ancient Mesopotamia but I am glad I found "Between Two Rivers". The author makes the past come alive with her discussions of Mesopotamian literature, art, political and social life, and military history. She has built a bridge, perhaps made up of the clay cuneiform tablets that she loves, to a very distant time. Thousands of years separate us from the Sumerians, Akkadians, Babylonians and others. But while listening to this book, those millennia vanished and I was reminded that the eras discussed are really not so different from our own or any other. Do give "Between Two Rivers" a listen or read. You will be happy that you did.

Informative and enjoyable

Al-Rashid uses an innovative and engaging approach to her topic. She starts with relics found in an ancient temple, all of which predated the reconstruction of the temple, which occurred near the end of the period covered in her book.

She explores the question of how those objects ended up in the temple: did the temple serve also as the world’s first museum? Al-Rashid then delves into the details of the objects and uses each to discuss a different aspect of the history and culture of Mesopotamia. She also explores the Mesopotamians’ views of their own history, as perhaps evidenced by the presence of the relics in the palace.

I found her modern-day examples, particularly stories of her family, to illustrate her subject especially engaging. Her expertise, her passion and her sense of humor come through loud and clear, and I find myself wishing I could have a discussion with her.

Excellent!

I love listening to her voice her pronunciation of words I couldn’t pronounce, especially if I read this. Thank you so much, informative and interesting. I love your connections.