Andrew K. (kuligowskiandrewt) -
Just as Robert Harris's "Pompeii" managed to capture the spirit and sensations of the Roman Empire, along with a 1st century CE scientific look at volcanology vs. the "The gods are angry with us!" approach one expects from watching old movies, Lauren Tarshis does the same in "I Survived the Destruction of Pompeii, AD 79". Except Ms. Tarshis uses a lot fewer pages and a lot fewer / smaller words to accomplish this task. (Not to take away from Harris' excellent book, but to praise Tarshis!)
Young slave Marcus must deal with the realities of living as a non-citizen in the Roman Empire, of having his family separated through the sale of his father, of being beaten for not carrying out the expressed wishes (or even non-expressed) of his master. If this sounds like something set in the pre-Civil War south, you may have caught onto an unintended parallel or perhaps the author meant to convey this after all! However, there are differences American slaves weren't sent to face gladiators and wild beasts in what passed for entertainment. And American slaves weren't facing earthquakes and a smoking mountain right next to their home.
Lauren Tarshis's "I Survived" series successfully conveys the sensation of historical disasters and the times in which they are set to middle grade readers by centering on a protagonist of their own age. "I Survived the Destruction of Pompeii" is another fine addition to that collection.
RATING: 5 stars.
Young slave Marcus must deal with the realities of living as a non-citizen in the Roman Empire, of having his family separated through the sale of his father, of being beaten for not carrying out the expressed wishes (or even non-expressed) of his master. If this sounds like something set in the pre-Civil War south, you may have caught onto an unintended parallel or perhaps the author meant to convey this after all! However, there are differences American slaves weren't sent to face gladiators and wild beasts in what passed for entertainment. And American slaves weren't facing earthquakes and a smoking mountain right next to their home.
Lauren Tarshis's "I Survived" series successfully conveys the sensation of historical disasters and the times in which they are set to middle grade readers by centering on a protagonist of their own age. "I Survived the Destruction of Pompeii" is another fine addition to that collection.
RATING: 5 stars.
