A NEW ADVENTURE IN POMPEII

How I Met Fantasma

Diagram showing the life cycle of stars, including protostar, main sequence, giant, supernova, neutron star, and black hole stages with illustrations of each stage.

Meet Fantasma in a beautifully illustrated rhyming story of friendship, discovery, and adventure in Pompeii.

Buy the Book
Animated girl in purple shirt and orange shorts pointing at a marble statue of a woman in a dress with a floral crown, surrounded by plaster busts in a museum or art exhibit.
Diagram showing the ripening process of grapes into wine, depicting stages such as green grapes, chardonnay, purple grapes, and wine in a glass, with arrows indicating the progression.
A girl with a hat, purple shirt, and orange shorts walking her dog in front of a gray, black-and-white ancient Roman theater.
Colorful sparkling stars and dots forming a constellation pattern on a black background.

How I Met Fantasma is a beautifully illustrated adventure that brings history to life through the eyes of a curious young girl and an unforgettable dog. Beginning at the Naples Archaeological Museum and traveling back in time to Pompeii before the eruption of Mount Vesuvius, Fantasma leads young readers on an adventure filled with discovery, friendship, culture, and wonder.

Written in playful rhyme and meant to be read aloud.
Perfect for:

An Adventure Through History, Friendship & Wonder

A colorful, digital pixelated scoreboard with purple, pink, black, red, yellow, and blue colors, featuring various shapes and lines.

THE STORY

Colorful, abstract digital illustration with various geometric shapes, lines, and sparkles against a purple background.
Colorful star and dot decorations with text 'You shine bright' in black font on a white background.
Colorful pixel art map with labeled locations and a legend.

Young travelers dreaming of Italy

Families planning an Italian adventure

Colorful digital illustration featuring a red platform, purple and yellow star-shaped decorations, black rectangular shapes, and pink and purple blocks.

Teachers bringing ancient history to life

Dog lovers

Colorful geometric abstract digital art with pink, purple, black, red, yellow elements and star-like shapes.
Diagram of electron energy levels in an atom showing transitions between energy states with emitted photons of different wavelengths, including a red, yellow, teal, purple, and violet photon.

Parents and grandparents looking for a beautiful and meaningful gift

Buy the Book

Part Travel Inspiration. Part History Lesson. A Story About Friendship.

MORE THAN A STORY

Diagram showing the stages of star formation, including the molecular cloud, protostar, main sequence star, red giant, and white dwarf. Color-coded with labels for each stage.

Part travel inspiration, part history lesson, and most importantly, a story about an extraordinary friendship.

Colorful abstract digital art with various geometric shapes and shiny star-like decorations.

Travel & Discovery

Young readers can discover Italy and dream about exploring Pompeii.

A digital illustration featuring colorful geometric shapes and sparkles on a white background.
Diagram of the Pleiades star cluster showing multiple stars labeled with symbols and colors, with arrows indicating different directions, and a red bar at the bottom.

History Comes to Life

A playful way to introduce children to ancient history and archaeology.

Abstract digital art with geometric shapes, lines, and colorful star-like accents in purple, pink, teal, yellow, and black.

Written in Rhyme

A rhyming story meant to be read aloud and enjoyed together.

Colorful digital abstract art with stars, rectangles, and lines in purple, pink, blue, yellow, and red on a white background.

Friendship

At the heart of the adventure is the unforgettable friendship between a young girl and Fantasma.

Buy the Book
A pixelated digital illustration of a birthday cake with three layers in purple, red, and black, decorated with colorful stars and a shadow cast by a single star on the white background.
Colorful abstract digital illustration with purple, yellow, and turquoise elements on a light background.
Colorful abstract digital art with purple, yellow, and turquoise shapes and accents on a purple background.
A colorful abstract digital illustration with geometric shapes, sparkles, and layered elements in purple, yellow, blue, and other colors.

MEET FANTASMA

Meet Fantasma in a beautifully illustrated rhyming story of friendship, discovery, and adventure in Pompeii.

Discover Fantasma →
A girl in a green hat and purple dress sitting by a fireplace, surrounded by five puppies of different breeds in a cozy stone room.

MADE FOR CURIOUS MINDS

Colorful pixel art with a red platform, purple, cyan, and yellow stars, and a black and purple vertical structure.

Whether you're planning a family adventure to Italy, bringing ancient history into the classroom, looking for a meaningful gift, or simply love a beautiful dog story, How I Met Fantasma offers something to discover.

A Story the Whole Family Can Discover Together

………………………………………………………………….

For Families

A beautiful story to share with children, parents, and grandparents.

Stylized abstract graphical representation of a awards podium with three levels in purple, black, and red, decorated with colorful star shapes in purple, teal, yellow, and purple.

………………………………………………………………….

Colorful bar graph with three bars in purple, black, and red, each decorated with star icons, on a white background.

For Teachers

A creative way to bring ancient history and archaeology to life.

………………………………………………………………….

Colorful stars and sparkles floating around on a black background.

For Travelers

A colorful digital illustration of a game show podium with three levels, decorated with stars in purple, blue, and yellow, set against a white background.

An unforgettable adventure centered around friendship and one very special dog.

A meaningful connection to Naples, Pompeii, and the places behind the story.

………………………………………………………………….

For Dog Lovers

A young girl with red hair, wearing a purple shirt, orange shorts, and brown boots, is pointing a flashlight at a stone sculpture of a woman in a dress. The sculpture is perched on a rock and is surrounded by a sparkling glow. Behind the girl, there is a dog with a brown and white coat looking up at the sculpture, and shelves with multiple plaster busts of heads in the background.
Colorful pixel art of a city skyline with tall buildings, clouds, and stars above.

EXPLORE FANTASMA'S WORLD

Step beyond the pages of How I Met Fantasma and discover the history, places, and fascinating facts that inspired Fantasma's adventure. Explore Pompeii, ancient Roman life, archaeology, and the world of Italy through a child-friendly journey of discovery.

Discover the World Behind the Story

Stylized, colorful bar chart with four vertical bars in purple, pink, black, and red, each with star-shaped accents in matching colors.
Explore Fantasma's World
The image shows two smiling people, a woman and a man, taking a selfie in front of ancient Roman wall paintings depicting hunting scenes and animals. The woman has shoulder-length brown hair, glasses, and is wearing a black leather jacket and a dark shirt. The man has a beard, glasses, and is wearing a flat cap, a checkered shirt, and a dark blazer. The background includes a partially damaged historic fresco with scenes of hunters and various animals.
A line drawing of a person holding a bunch of stars, with colorful star and sparkle charms around them.

THE PEOPLE BEHIND THE STORY

Meet the Authors

Meet Davin Michael Stedman and Sabranie Coyne, the authors behind How I Met Fantasma. Discover the story behind the book, their love of travel, history, art, culture, education, and storytelling, and the inspiration that brought Fantasma to life.

Colorful pixelated graphic with a red horizontal banner, purple and teal star-like shapes, and a black background.
Meet The Authors

What Readers Are Saying

  • This is exactly the kind of book I love finding for my children. It feels like a real adventure, but it also gives them something to learn along the way. The rhyming makes it especially fun to read together.

    — Parent & Read-Aloud Reader

  • I bought this because my granddaughter loves dogs and has always wanted to visit Italy. I loved that the story gave us so many things to talk about after we finished reading it.

    — Grandparent & Family Reader

  • I can already see so many ways to use this story in the classroom. It opens the door to conversations about Pompeii, archaeology, travel, history, and even poetry without feeling like a lesson.

    — Elementary School Teacher

  • Fantasma is the kind of character children remember. The friendship at the heart of the story makes it sweet, while the setting gives it something completely different from the usual children’s books.

    — Dog Lover & Reader

  • What I enjoyed most was the way the story made Pompeii feel like somewhere you could actually imagine exploring. It made me want to pull out our Italy photos and start planning another trip.

    — Family Traveler

Animated scene of two girls, one young girl with a purple shirt and orange shorts and an older girl with a brown vest and blue jeans, standing with a dog, a cat, and a puppy inside a ruined, ancient coliseum with dark clouds overhead.

COME MEET FANTASMA

Events & Appearances

Follow Fantasma’s journey beyond the pages of the book. Find upcoming book launches, readings, bookstore appearances, festivals, book fairs, school visits, museum and educational events, and other opportunities to meet the authors and discover How I Met Fantasma.

See Upcoming Events

FOR EDUCATORS & FAMILIES

More Ways to Explore Fantasma’s World

Bring the story beyond the book with resources designed for families, teachers, and curious young readers. Explore discussion questions, Pompeii and ancient history activities, vocabulary, printable activities, classroom ideas, Italy travel resources, and more as the collection grows

A colorful, stylized illustration of a multi-tiered cake with vibrant colors and decorative stars.
Colorful video game graphics with platform elements in purple, black, red, yellow, and teal, resembling a game scene or level design.
Explore Resources
A lively street scene with a girl in colorful clothing talking, a small dog, a horse-drawn cart, and a woman selling goods, set against an ancient stone building with columns.
Colorful pixelated digital artwork with abstract shapes and bright colors including purple, pink, black, red, yellow, and blue.

READY TO MEET FANTASMA?

Bring Fantasma Home

Part travel inspiration, part history lesson, and most importantly, a story about an extraordinary friendship.

A colorful pixel art style graphic with a red base, purple and teal decorative elements, and black and pink vertical sections.
Buy the Book
Abstract digital artwork with geometric shapes, vibrant colors, and star-like decorations, featuring a large red rectangle, purple, pink, and cyan accents, and black background.