This series of hilarious fictional diaries put us inside the heads of hapless figures from history. Marcus is a 15-year-old boy living in Pompeii in 79 AD. During a trip to Rome with his merchant dad, he finds himself tricked into becoming a gladiator and forced to fight deadly warriors in the arena. Will Marcus manage to escape his imprisonment? And will he learn to fight and distinguish himself as a gladiator... or will he just run away screaming? `Get Real' fact boxes featured throughout, as well as a timeline, historical biographies and a glossary in the endmatter, provide historical context and further information.