- Graphic Novels
- Ages 6–9
- Comedy
Pablo and Splash: Roman Holiday
Book 3 of 4 in Pablo and SplashView the full series
A Roman-era comic adventure where Pablo and Splash try to prove their time-travelling credentials and end up in gladiator-level trouble. It keeps the series' accessible visual comedy while adding ancient-history fun.
- Best for6–9
- FormatGraphic
- Length240 pp
- Read aloud~1 hr55 min
The vibe
What it’s like.
Style
- Conversational
- Comedic
Tone
- Funny
- Silly
- Adventurous
- Exciting
- Suspenseful
Themes
Experience meters
What’s it about?
The story.
When Benji refuses to believe Pablo and Splash have really travelled through time, the penguins decide to bring back proof. Ancient Rome seems ideal: surely a centurion helmet will convince him. But their plan goes wrong when they meet an emperor with a worrying interest in collecting exotic birds, and the pair find themselves facing danger in the Colosseum. Roman Holiday gives the series a bigger historical-comedy setting while staying true to the core appeal: two funny penguin best friends, time-machine chaos, quick thinking and plenty of expressive visual humour. It is especially good for readers who enjoy a little history mixed with slapstick and adventure. The stakes are higher than in a simple gag comic, but the tone remains friendly, silly and highly accessible.
Fit check
Right for your child?
Where it lands by age
- 1
- 3
- 5
- 7
- 9
- 11
- 13
- Best fit · 6–9
- Read aloud · 6–9
- Independent · 6–9
Prose load
Light
Visual support
Very high
Reluctant-reader friendly
Very
Read-aloud quality
Workable
Works well for
- Reluctant readers
Nothing in the book is likely to concern most parents. Safe to recommend without preview.
Bedtime suitability
3 / 5 · Workable
Sensitive-child
4 / 5 · Good fit
Graphic intensity
1 / 5 · None
Best for
- Funny graphic novel
- Ancient rome
- Time travel
- Reluctant readers
- Penguin adventure
Avoid if
- Wants dense prose
- Prefers realistic stories
- Very sensitive to capture peril
Particularly good for children who are…
- Reluctant reader
- Struggling with reading
- Interested in science
- Making friends
In the classroom
How it works in school.
A funny time-travel adventure-comic series — a reluctant-reader pleaser and classroom-library pick.
A book children love that happens to support school — never a stand-in for the texts a class is taught with. Reviewed for the classroom · June 2026.
Why it lands
Why they love it.
Why kids love it
The specific weight is the emperor's interest in exotic birds — the penguins going to Rome for a centurion helmet to prove time travel to Benji, ending up facing real danger in the Colosseum. The third Pablo and Splash with the highest stakes yet inside the friendly tone.
- Adventure and freedom
- Animal companions
- Friendship and belonging
- Surviving danger
- Time travel
Why parents love it
The third Pablo and Splash — ancient Rome adding historical-comedy fun and slightly bigger gladiator-level peril, time-machine chaos and expressive visual humour intact. Friendly and accessible despite the stakes.
- Shared humour
- Quick to read
- Conversation starter
In the series
Pablo and Splash.
4 books · open the series →
About the author & illustrator
Sheena Dempsey.
If you liked this
Three ways out of this book.
If you liked this, try…
Lateral matches. Same shelf, different texture.
Come into this from…
Easier or preparing reads — perfect lead-ins.
Where to go next…
Escalation reads — a step up in scale, silliness, or stakes.
More like this…
Books that share themes and topics with this one.
Buy or borrow
Pick up a copy.
- Bookshop.org ↗
- Waterstones ↗
- Amazon UK ↗
- Hive ↗
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