Pliny is an ordinary Roman boy with a HUGE secret: he can talk to animals.

When Pliny stumbles upon a dormouse trapped in a pot, he doesn't expect to come to its rescue. He definitely doesn't expect the mouse to start squeaking orders at him, to actually understand the bossy mouse at the bottom of the pot, or for him to be so bad-tempered.

After the death of his father, Pliny's cruel uncle Balbus and his awful wife Hortensia have invaded his home and intend to take over the family unit, threatening to overturn everything Pliny has ever known. But Pliny has bigger fish to fry, like his new, perplexing, and chaos-inducing ability to talk to animals, or the prospect of his new dormouse friend, Muscardinus, being roasted and eaten by uncle Balbus. Join Sunday Times bestselling author Elodie Harper in her charming debut illustrated young Middle Grade, as she brings Roman history to life for young readers.