I've been mulling over how I should review The Last Girls of Pompeii, a youth historical fiction novel by Kathryn Lasky. It's not a great book, nor is it awfully terrible to the point where I could not finish it. Would I recommend this to my friends? No. Would I recommend this to preteens who like history and a little romance? I think I might, though I would recommend other books before this one. This is because The Last Girls of Pompeii is one of those so-so reads, a book I only read because my professor was giving away free books and I'm not the kind to say no to that!
Basically, The Last Girls of Pompeii is a story that takes place during A.D. 79 in Pompeii (As some of you may already know, this is the Roman town-city that was destroyed by volcanic ashes when Mount Vesuvius erupted.). It is about 12-year-old Julia who is born with a withered arm and Sura, Julia's slave and confidant. The narrative piggybacks between the perspectives of these two main female characters, giving each a voice of their own. Both girls are very different from one another, from their background (rich vs. poor) to how they physically look (ordinary vs. beautiful). However, despite this, their lives are connected to one another, as Julia's politically wealthy family has secret plans to send each of them away following Cornelia's (Julia's sister) wedding. There's also an even larger problem brewing, which no one but a sibyl who lives at the mouth of Sarnus seems to know about.
What I like:
- Julia has a handicap, so she has to deal with people who are judgmental and discriminatory towards her. I like it when the main characters are different than others and has personal struggles they have to overcome.
- Strong female characters. Definitely more of a book for girls than boys. Julia and Sura both are confident and they are willing to take risks.
- Historical context. There's a lot of little tidbits of historical detail scattered throughout this book on simple things, such as what people ate, their superstitions, etc. that assists readers in understanding the period better.
- The dialogue and some parts of the writing were a little bit too modern for my taste. I felt as though the characters in this reading could have been from today's world. Perhaps, this made it easier for young adult readers, but it just felt out of place to me.
- Pacing. There were no really draggy parts, things moved along well, but I think because of this it was a little too fast paced and, as a result, the characters in the book were not as well developed. Sura's gladiator brother and Julia's cousin, Marcus are interesting characters, but you don't care enough for them because the plot does not devote enough time to help the readers relate or connect to the characters.
- Cliche plot/plot twists. I don't want to give anything away, but you'll know when you read it.
Overall, The Last Girls of Pompeii is a short and easy read. It took me two days on the train to finish it. Surprisingly, I enjoyed the author's note at the end of the book more than the actual story. It's well written and it was interesting to learn about how the author was able use her research and trip to Pompeii to assist her in writing the story.
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Please note: Even though this book is suppose to be suitable for kids in late elementary through middle school, some references made in the book regarding sexual behavior is not, which includes a passage on genitals at a public bath, men trying to touch Sura's rear end, slave prostitution, among other things. If you're really picky, Cornelia uses a profane word once at Julia. In addition to this, the writing style is suitable for younger kids, but some of the context seems more appropriate for older kids.
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