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A mystery in the desert: who is Ralph M. Trilipush, really?
by Euan Kerr, Minnesota Public Radio
September 29, 2004

Arthur Phillips grew up in Minnesota, but his stories revolve around Americans trying to find themselves while overseas. (Image courtesy of Random House Publications)

St. Paul, Minn. — Arthur Phillips burst onto the literary scene a couple of years ago with his bestseller, "Prague." That story followed young Americans looking to find themselves in post-Iron Curtain Eastern Europe.

His new book looks at another group of Americans abroad, but this time in a very different era. "The Egyptologist" follows the adventures of Ralph M. Trilipush in 1922.

Trilipush is an Oxford educated classicist who teaches at Harvard. He's in Cairo to mount an expedition to find the tomb of a mysterious king. Trilipush has the gift of gab, but as Arthur Phillips told MPR's Euan Kerr, it soon becomes clear the Egyptologist may not be all he claims. To hear their interview, choose the audio link in the right column.

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