When We Were Romans

Hanna, Lawrence and Jemima are off on an adventure.

They are trekking in a small crowded car from their cottage home in England to Rome, where Hanna spent happy times many years ago. 9 year old Lawrence and his little sister, along with hamster Hermann think this is a vacation but in actuality Hanna is running away from her troubles, new and old. They are short on money and stay in bursts of energy with multiple friends to which Lawrence applies an animal for each, like Crissy chick for example. The story is told through the point of view of Lawrence so its saturated in the misspellings of a child, British vernacular and repetitive grumblings. He only wants to make sad mummy happy and tolerate his little sister long enough to get through this trip and back to school in time for his exams. Little does he know that the adventure becomes as twisted as the roads they travel. Mum never stays smiling and the reader slowly understands the seriousness the novel begins to take. The realization sets in and although I dreaded what was obviously coming, I had grown to love these characters and hoped and prayed for their best outcome. Completely original When We Were Romans is an incredible journey in an entirely different direction. Anyone with an open mind to creativity and life in general will "get" what this book truly represents. Highly recommend to my faithful readers!