Pompeii Robert Harris

[derek forrest]

Just finished this splendid book which starts 4 days before the eruption and follows the efforts of an Aquarius to discover the stoppage of water on the Aqua Augusta. 60 miles long and still running after the eruption. He manages a good creation of the landscape both human and physical and uses the device of our foreknowledge as a way of keeping up the tension so the pages are pulled without trouble. He also provides a good description of the Roman water system and puts it where it has to be -central to what the Romans regarded as civilisation.<br>
If you want to read a lovely bit of prose turn to page 334.<br>
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I gather his next book will be Roman too. <p></p><i></i>

[Epictetus]

I'm continually playing catch-up with books I want to read, but I finally finished Harris' Pompeii. I suppose one might think that the theme of the story - the eruption - would be the best part of such a book, but what fascinated me the most was the water supply. It was extremely interesting to read about the system, and how it worked, and how it was maintained. If you haven't had a chance to read this one yet, I recommend it.