Time Train to Ancient Rome

Usborne Puzzle Adventures #6

by Gaby Waters

-- Action packed stories of mystery and adventure interwoven with puzzles to solve-- Great fun for kids to read and decipher

Genres: Childrens, Picture Books, Mystery, Middle Grade, Fiction

48 pages, Hardcover

First published September 28, 1988

Reviews

[Sophie Crane · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Great book, brings back the memories. Good for reading with the kids.

[Capn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it - the best of the Usborne Puzzle Adventures yet, I think! Could have thrown in a few more Roman facts (for example, labelling the rooms in the baths Caldarium, Frigidarium, etc.), but even I learnt something new (Asses? That was an unexpected bonus giggle to go with spotting all the bare bums at the baths! Four asses to one sestertius and four sestertii to one denarius. Fun and educational, and youngster got to say "asses" several times without reprocussion. The joys.).
Weak point was the Legend-of-Zelda-esque 'dodge the guards' in the garden to gain entra nce to the Palace. The correct route was, to our minds, fraught. Years of training in Hyrule have probably raised our collective game on that front. Viva Link!
I'm honestly considering buying a copy of this, even though I've just borrowed it for free from the local library. It's a good one.
HIGHLY RECOMMEND for teachers to have it on-hand if they have a Roman history unit - you could use it as a distraction for the bright and bored kid who whizzed through the lesson too quickly, extra homework for the keen, or maybe something to keep older students who are feeling put-out engaged. The reader must learn to read roman numerals (and then use those numbers in a straightforward substitution cipher - but they have to make the logical leap themselves), do a maths puzzle with asses (ha!), mentally reconstruct a broken clay tablet, solve lots of Where's Wally/Waldo spotting tasks, master a dungeon map (tricky, with a tricky maze downstream), read a convoluted message, plot a course, follow a conversation, resolve an anagram, and solve a two-truths-and-a-lie puzzle. Oh, and there's an incorrect assumption made by one of the protagonists that creates a bit of a red herring, which I found a delightful addition.
I'm finding this one hard to slot into an age range. "Middle grades" would be the median, but a nerdy 6 year old could do it (probably with some help to hand), and I enjoyed it as an adult, so... 8-15? If you are helping a younger child, it's probably interesting from even 4 or 5 years old, though the plot and text would be a bit heavy. A good shout for a family puzzle, then, and if I owned an AirBnB, I'd keep a copy of this on the bookshelf for rainy day entertainment. :)

[Eleanor Brooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my absolute favourite puzzle stories as a child!!! The puzzles are engaging and the story is interesting. One of the books that spawned my initial interest in Roman history! I still had fun solving the mystery even as an adult.

[Cupof Tea · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked the amount of puzzles I had to write down for this one, including some algebra :) I did find a more efficient way (than the answers') though the maze under the Colosseum though.


This author has produced some of my favourite puzzle books, and this theme was interesting, reminding me of The Trolley to Yesterday a bit.

[Georgina]

Fun theme, but the puzzles in this one feel pretty lazy.

[Laurel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Still good fun 30 years after I first read this. And my daughter loves it too.

[Louise Allan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read for the nostalgia effect. Some of the puzzles are still quite difficult. Sure my kids will love it.

[Jo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not quite as enamoring as it it was a few years ago, but definitely fun. For me as a kid, these books weren't just your regular "look and find" sort of thing--they had stuff like cracking codes in them! Yeah, fun stuff.