Random Thought Table: So I was listening to "I, Claudius"...

[jeriendhal]

...the audiobook of the original novel, not the classic BBC miniseries, which follows Claudius up to his impromptu crowning as Emperor after the assassination of Caligula. Most of which consists of him being repeatedly humiliated by most of his family and generally treated as a stammering idiot despite his skill as a researcher and a scholar.

And for some reason this got me to thinking about a YA mystery novel I read as a wee lad called Detectives in Togas, set in Ancient Rome. Because now I want to update it with a bunch of kids helping gather clues for Claudius as he solves mysteries while simultaneously doing his best not to appear too smart in front of his grandmother Livia.

Comments

[mmegaera.livejournal.com]

I'd read that.

[colliemommie.livejournal.com]

Graves' Livia sees through precocious children as well as she does through everyone else, though. I'd be worried about Rufus and Co.

[jeriendhal.livejournal.com]

In this version I don't think she'd be quite as super-humanly calculating and murderous, if only to give the poor kids a chance. :)