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Rating: 
Summary: Let me guess what political party the author votes for
Review: This book could work a little harder at exploring Ancient Roman culture. It gives no more information then a basic timeline would. When it does give historical info, it unfairly applies current day culture and beliefs to the behavior of the Romans. Space is wasted on touchy feely issues that are only tangentially related to the supposed topic. For instance, the authors urge children to "help a hungry family get a chicken, rabbit, goat, or cow" by joining an organization via a website they pitch. The topic kind of comes out of left-field at the reader. At one point the authors refer to the story of Romulus and Remus as "bizarre" (a word I might use to describe their own thought process). They suggest that the "brothers needed help in communication skills" and ask the reader to role-play how they "would...defuse the situation". On page 19, they write 2 sentences about Pliny the Younger's description of Vesuvius erupting. They then tell the reader to go look it up on the web if they want to read it. But on the same page, they eagerly discuss pretending to do an archaeological dig in the backyard. I think the authors had their priorities a little skewed when they were writing this text. I much prefer to have my children read history books that put the events into context for them. There are better choices out there. Don't waste your money on this one.
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