Book Review 14

I read a book. The name is ‘Pompeii.’ The city of Pompeii was a part of the Roman Empire in the first century AD. Pompeii was a busy trading center. And there were 20000 people. The morning of 24 August, 79 AD, began like any other summer day in Pompeii. People were up and about before the sun rose. By sunrise, Pompeii’s streets were busy. Farmers began to sell food. In the forum, shops, government buildings, temples and the baths were open for business. Children began their lessons at school. After sunrise, the people of Pompeii felt the first earthquakes. The cause of the earthquakes was the eruption of Mount Vesuvius-only a few kilometers away. Soon after, hot ash and rocks began to rain down on the city. Within a short time, the ash blocked out the sun and was black. The air was full of sounds of the volcano. And the air was hot. Fires broke out all over the city. The people of Pompeii panicked. Some people reached the city gates quickly and left by the city. They were lucky. Other people ran to the nearby beach because they wanted to leave by boat. But, the sea was wild. People decided to wait the beach. There were many people in the city of Pompeii. Poisonous gases were now seeping out of Mount Vesuvius. Within a few minutes, the gases drifted across the city and down to the beach. The gases killed everything. The ash covered the bodies of the dead and slowly buried the city. Pompeii was not discovered again until the 1700s. A farmer found ruins of the city under his land. And most of the city of Pompeii has been uncovered. Now thousands of people visit Pompeii each year. I heard the city of Pompeii on TV. And then I shuddered. The people of Pompeii were very sad. And the calamity is very scary. Japan has a lot of earthquakes. 15 years ago, there was very big earthquake in Hansin and Awaji. The earthquake broke many cities and killed many people and animals. It is very sad. And we don’t know when the earthquakes will happen. Perhaps, the big earthquake will happen tomorrow. We don’t know. We don’t stop the earthquake. But we can prepare for the worst. I think that I must buy flashlight and some things to useful. And I decide to learn ways to lifesaving. Pompeii is in Italy. In Pompeii, Visitors can walk along the streets and see art and graffiti on the walls of the buildings. And there is the museum. Someday I want to visit the city of Pompeii. And I am interested in Roman Empire. Italy has long past and deep culture. And Italy had a lot of the historic sites and arts.(464words)