This will be more interesting to readers looking for an account of what life in an ancient Roman city was like; and those interested in the eruption.
Couched in a series of eye-witness accounts of his days in the city by Taras the Mede, the author obviously did extensive research on how Pompeiians lived (and how many died.) The earthquakes and eruption are detailed in the last 50 pages as Taras escapes the destruction.
Another 20 pages outlines how Pompeii was forgotten in the following centuries, then slowly rediscovered and excavated.
This paperback version groups 112 notes at the back, which means the reader has to keep flipping back and forth. (Normally these notes would have been printed at the bottom of the appropriate page.) The map of the city shows many of the places Taras mentions, but is too small and crowded for comfort.
Not that great as an adventure tale, but comprehensive for a look at what it was like to live in ancient Pompeii for regular folks, prostitutes, gladiators, servants and the elite.
Couched in a series of eye-witness accounts of his days in the city by Taras the Mede, the author obviously did extensive research on how Pompeiians lived (and how many died.) The earthquakes and eruption are detailed in the last 50 pages as Taras escapes the destruction.
Another 20 pages outlines how Pompeii was forgotten in the following centuries, then slowly rediscovered and excavated.
This paperback version groups 112 notes at the back, which means the reader has to keep flipping back and forth. (Normally these notes would have been printed at the bottom of the appropriate page.) The map of the city shows many of the places Taras mentions, but is too small and crowded for comfort.
Not that great as an adventure tale, but comprehensive for a look at what it was like to live in ancient Pompeii for regular folks, prostitutes, gladiators, servants and the elite.
