Roman Diary
Explore the city at the heart of the ancient Roman Empire with Iliona, a Greek girl captured by pirates and sold into slavery.
The year is AD102 and Iliona, an educated Greek girl, has been orphaned and sold as a slave in Rome. Apart from her beloved diary, she hasn't a friend in the world... But the family she works for are not unkind, and as Iliona begins to make friends and look around her, she discovers that the teeming city at the heart of the empire is a fascinating place. Through her eyes, watch the Roman army return in triumph from war against the Dacians, visit Nero's baths, witness gladiators fighting in the famous amphitheatre, attend the senate and a sumptuous banquet, escape a house fire, discover how Roman women dress their hair ... and celebrate with her on the day that she is granted her freedom for her bravery!
Richard Platt is the author of Pirate Diary, which won the Kate Greenaway Medal, the Silver Smarties Book Prize and the Blue Peter Award for Best Factual Book, and Castle Diary, which was Highly Commended for the Kate Greenaway Medal and shortlisted for the Kurt Maschler Award. He lives near Tunbridge Wells, Kent. www.richardplatt.co.uk
David Parkins is a diverse artist, who has been successfully published in a variety of newspapers and comics as well as children's books. He is the illustrator of Roman Diary by Richard Platt and Alexander the Great by Jamila Gavin. He now lives in Ontario, Canada. www.davidparkins.com