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Loading... Pompeiiby Robert Harris
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will love Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. I liked this a lot. Maybe a good book for engineers to read - the aqueducts are described in loving detail, and the mechanics of the eruption are explained carefully via the use of selected quotes at the beginning of each chapter. The plot probably was a lot better mapped out on paper than it was in the actual book, as some of the characters seem neatly fleshed out and others less so. It's problematic that the whole thing ends in the eruption, because apparently the author felt that to let too many of the characters survive wouldn't make sense, but when all the characters vanish in one fell swoop at the end, you feel a bit cheated. Still, getting there is a lot of fun. Targeted at males. (  ) benfulton | Nov 3, 2009 |  I'm not usually much for historical fiction, but I thoroughly enjoyed this one. It is the well-known story of the eruption of Mount Vesuvius, but told from a slightly different perspective: the engineer of the aqueduct, dealing with a drought, a pipe blockage, and strange smells of sulfur in the water. In addition to the science (which I found fascinating - Roman technology was amazing), there is plenty of personal and political intrigue to keep the plot rolling along. This fun little book made me want to learn more about Pompeii and the Roman Empire, which says a lot, considering I'd never given them much thought outside the occasional History Channel documentary. Definitely recommended if you're in the mood for some good historical fiction. ( )1  melydia | Oct 28, 2009 | historical fiction, Vesuvius, Pompeii  Alice_Wonder | Oct 15, 2009 | To set a novel at the time of the eruption of Vesuvius is a great idea. The main protaganist is an aquarius - responsible for the upkeep of an aquaduct supplying water to most of the bay of Naples. Weaving in the mysterious disappearance of the previous aquarius, the interuption of the flow of water, some local authority corruption in Pompeii and the approaching eruption, it is an exciting account.It's also not short on historical accuracy (though I'm not a historian). The eruption itself is very well described, you do get a strong picture of what it and the panic people would have felt would have been like. Good stuff. (  )1 thelistener | Oct 1, 2009 | Per certi versi interessante sotto il profilo storico. La storia tuttavia non è molto coinvolgente. (  ) zinf | Jul 1, 2009 |  no reviews | add a review
Amazon.com Product Description (ISBN 0679428895, Hardcover)All along the Mediterranean coast, the Roman empire’s richest citizens are relaxing in their luxurious villas, enjoying the last days of summer. The world’s largest navy lies peacefully at anchor in Misenum. The tourists are spending their money in the seaside resorts of Baiae, Herculaneum, and Pompeii.But the carefree lifestyle and gorgeous weather belie an impending cataclysm, and only one man is worried. The young engineer Marcus Attilius Primus has just taken charge of the Aqua Augusta, the enormous aqueduct that brings fresh water to a quarter of a million people in nine towns around the Bay of Naples. His predecessor has disappeared. Springs are failing for the first time in generations. And now there is a crisis on the Augusta’s sixty-mile main line—somewhere to the north of Pompeii, on the slopes of Mount Vesuvius. Attilius—decent, practical, and incorruptible—promises Pliny, the famous scholar who commands the navy, that he can repair the aqueduct before the reservoir runs dry. His plan is to travel to Pompeii and put together an expedition, then head out to the place where he believes the fault lies. But Pompeii proves to be a corrupt and violent town, and Attilius soon discovers that there are powerful forces at work—both natural and man-made—threatening to destroy him. With his trademark elegance and intelligence, Robert Harris, bestselling author of Archangel and Fatherland, re-creates a world on the brink of disaster. (retrieved from Amazon Fri, 24 Apr 2009 07:58:04 -0400) The first test round has been closed. Visit the Open Shelves Classification group for details. |
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