Reddit mentions of Middle Egyptian: An Introduction To The Language And Culture Of Hieroglyphs

Most people start learning Middle Egyptian, and Allen is pretty much the standard English grammar book that most universities use these days. My only problem is that Allen is, in my opinion, not very well suited to learning on your own. It's a great reference book, but the way the lessons are presented is a bit obtuse, and the self-guided exercises are kinda awful. Granted, I used the second edition, and it's now in third, so some of the issues I had may have been corrected. Jim Allen has also released a companion volume of a sort of "greatest hits" of Middle Egyptian texts, and being able to learn and practice by diving right in to actual stories is helpful, I think.

If you want to start with Late Egyptian, I recommend "The Language of Ramesses" by Neveu which is a new-ish (2015) grammar, and it's pretty fantastic, and easy at least compared to the older Late Egyptian grammars that were available (like Junge). I find Late Egyptian easier, and more rewarding, to read, personally. The grammar rules are easier and better defined (from a modern perspective, at least), and there's a TON of literature in all genres in Late Egyptian.

Jim Allen’s 3rd edition.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1107663288/ref=dbs_a_w_dp_1107663288

Do you have this book? I really liked it. You can spend weeks learning the info on a single page, but I thought it was really clear and well-written. I spent a semester teaching a tiny bit of it to a bunch of elementary to middle-school aged kids a while ago, so it looks intimidating but if you’re just looking at it for fun and don’t mind going really slowly then it’s not too hard. Or maybe it would be good to look at in a few years if you’re still interested then.

Also there is an introductory course on Egyptian language that I liked (I think it’s also Middle Egyptian, like that book) on The Great Courses. It’s not too hard. It’s available with the monthly subscription option so you don’t have to buy it (their courses are always too expensive to buy, unfortunately).

There are universities with awesome Egyptology programs. And then there are universities with Classics departments and a big goose-egg when it comes to other ancient languages. Unfortunately my daughter got stuck at a university that only offers Greek and Latin, but they seem to have a huge variety of study-abroad options so I’m hoping she can find a way to study at an international university that offers more fun courses in other ancient languages and cultures. We will see. There’s always more than one way to get where you want to go.

Have fun.

I'm self taught.

This book is a fantastic resource for teaching yourself.