The Ancient Egyptians have got it all — mystery, magic, genius and gore — and the brighter your children the more interested they are likely to be in this culture — and the Tutankhamun exhibition opening this month.

For younger readers of 5+ Jill Paton Walsh's Pepi and the Secret Names (out of print but available from online retailers) tells the story of how a boy helps his father, an artist, by persuading a lion, snake, crocodile and hawk to model for the painted gods on a Pharaoh's tomb, after guessing their secret names (in genuine hieroglyphics). It's a picture-book classic, exquisitely illustrated by Fiona French, that will enhance numerous school projects.

Egyptology (7+) (Templar, £17.99) is one of the irresistible -ology books, threading a lost diary about discovering a tomb with a kind of scrapbook of fake letters, relics and scarabs. Although the price is hefty, it is as much a toy as a book, and provides much food for thought on gods, curses, tombs and so on. There is a more straight-down-the-line version in Dorling Kindersely's Ancient Egypt, which no junior bookshelf should be without, but this is great fun. Also check out Terry Deary's The Awesome Egyptians (one of his best), ideal for whipping up more enthusiasm and general knowledge under a carapace of disgusting facts about embalming.

Adele Geras's biography of Cleopatra (8+) (Kingfisher, £14.99) is ideal for girls. From the glittering, blue-jewelled eye on its cover to the story within, it's a gorgeous gift. Geras is one of our best novelists for young people interested in the ancient world, and her account of Cleopatra as seen by her 10-year-old handmaiden Nefret is touching and vivid, while skating over some of the more salacious tragic episodes. M.P.Robertson does an equally good job illustrating the events of 41-40BC with characteristically gentle, detailed comedy. Geras understands that, whatever the period, children and adults don't really change.

Roger Lancelyn Green's Tales of Ancient Egypt (10+) (Puffin £7.99) is slightly more difficult than his collections of Greek and Roman myths. He leads the reader from the Egyptian creation story through the betrayal by Set and the rise of Osiris, and divides his book up into tales of the gods, and of men, all told in his clear, resonant prose. This is one of the very best books for any young person seriously interested in ancient history — and a bargain.

Taking flight into new fiction for children of 10+ are Carole Wilkinson's excellent thrillers about Ramose, Prince in Exile (Catnip, £4.99). The books (by the author of the wonderful Dragonkeeper series) show how a spoilt, selfish boy learns to survive in a brutal new world of intrigue and murder. Strong on incidental details of Ancient Egyptian life, and on the need for loyal friends, it works well as an imaginative way into the subject. The prose is simple and direct, and the tension never flags as Ramose battles for his rightful place against priests and members of his own family.

Dianne Hofmeyr's Eye of the Moon (11+) (Simon & Schuster, £10.99) takes a similar premise, but has a more sophisticated narrative. Isikara, spirited and resourceful daughter of the Crocodile God's priest, tells how she rescues the drugged prince Tuthmosis when his mother Tiy (Tutankhamun's grandmother) dies and is prepared for burial. Escaping down a secret passage in a pyramid before fleeing in disguise for Nubia, they have numerous hair-raising adventures while pursued by High Priests. Tuthmosis was the father of Ramose, so you could say it runs in the family. With its gold and crimson cover and exciting plot, the sequel, Eye of the Sun, is something to anticipate next spring, long after mummy-mania has died down.

Egypt Travel

• Discover the Nile on a voyage into the past
• The pharaohs get a face-lift
• Bringing Egypt's history to life for the kids