The Romans: Gods, Emperors, and Dormice

by Marcia Williams, Marcia Williams (Illustrator)

Overview

“Filled with humor and a bit of attitude . . . will engage even the most reluctant young readers.” — School Library Journal

Meet Dormeo: gladiator, dormouse, berry-nibbler, and guide to ancient Rome. He’s about to lead a tour — from the temperamental gods and goddesses of Mount Olympus to the birth of the Roman Republic and the death of Julius Caesar. On the way are glimpses of life as a Roman citizen, from families to festivals, gladiators to guards, as well as a look at some of Rome’s best-known emperors (good and not so good). Packed with fascinating information, this graphic storybook is a young reader’s ideal introduction to the rise and fall of the Roman Empire.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780763699789
Publisher:	Candlewick Press
Publication date:	08/14/2018
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	40
Product dimensions:	6.50(w) x 6.40(h) x 0.60(d)
Lexile:	930L (what's this?)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Marcia Williams has written and illustrated many books in her highly successful and entertaining comic-strip style. Among her many retellings are Ancient Egypt: Tales of Gods and Pharaohs, Greek Myths for Young Children, Tales from Shakespeare, and More Tales from Shakespeare. Marcia Williams lives in London.

Editorial Reviews

In cartoon panels, the inimitable Williams offers snapshots of ancient Rome from the mythological creation of the universe to the fall of the empire.
—Kirkus Reviews

These busy cartoons range from minuscule to full-page and always invite close inspection. Crammed within, readers will find miniature charts, tiny maps, overhead diagrams of outdoor areas, lessons on daily life, and plenty of modern snark. It’s an usual conceit pulled off quite well—by employing Dormeo as a humorous narrator, Williams is able to present atrocities imposed upon the lower classes of Roman people without overwhelming readers. Lots and lots of information here; prepare for this book to be renewed at least once.
—Booklist

Filled with humor and a bit of attitude, this latest venture for Williams will engage even the most reluctant young readers. An excellent addition to a history or classics curriculum.
—School Library Journal

Williams’ slim, richly illustrated account of Roman history will ... do the trick for middle-grade students with an enthusiasm for ancient (or at least very, very early) history.
—Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

From the Publisher

11/01/2013
Gr 4–8—Guided by a playful dormouse, readers are greeted with page after page of busy illustrations of the beginnings of humankind, including Romulus and Remus's founding of Rome, short histories of some of its notable kings, and culminating in the rise and eventual fall of this sophisticated city. Along the way, children meet the citizens, warriors, and emperors who all contributed to the evolution of this ancient civilization and learn quite a bit of history, via some "res vera," Latin for "facts," courtesy of the dormouse guide. Filled with humor and a bit of attitude, this latest venture for Williams will engage even the most reluctant young readers. An excellent addition to a history or classics curriculum.—Carol Connor, Cincinnati Public Schools, OH

School Library Journal

2013-09-01
In cartoon panels, the inimitable Williams offers snapshots of ancient Rome from the mythological creation of the universe to the fall of the empire. Lightly salting her account with Latin quips ("In theobroma cacao fidemus!"), Williams pens a semiserious narrative history broken up into bite-sized bits on single-topic spreads ("The Gruesome Gauls"). She illustrates them with small cartoon scenes that depict significant incidents or scenes of daily life. Dropping side comments and the occasional Res vera ("fact") as he goes, a dozy dormouse aptly named Dormeo Augustus squires young readers along. He leads them past the major gods, the tale of Romulus and Remus, Rome's first seven kings, the Republic, the Caesars and a select few other emperors. There are side excursions to the Forum and a crowded bath, plus glimpses of patrician and plebeian life, slavery, gladiators and the renowned Roman army. Though a certain amount of mayhem makes its way into her account, the author tones down the worst excesses (as Dormeo puts it, the Sabine women were "treated most cruelly"—that's one way to put it) or acknowledges them only in passing. Not a very detailed picture, but broad enough to leave younger readers with a general sense of how grand the grandeur was. (Informational picture book. 8-10)

Kirkus Reviews