The House of the Scorpion | Nancy Farmer

The House of the Scorpion | Nancy Farmer | My thirteen yr old loved this book!!!

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The House of the S...

	The House of the Scorpion Nancy Farmer Simon Pulse, 2004 - 400 pages average customer review:based on 315 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Life in the future

Most high school students would tell you that they wouldn't read a book that their old, crabby, high school librarian had suggested to them. They might even go out of their way to avoid ever even coming into contact with that particular title. Yes, that is what most high school students would tell you, but then again, I'm not like most high school students.

When my librarian said I ought to read A Girl Named Disaster, I was skeptical, but didn't want to seem rude, so I took the book off the shelf and checked it out anyway. I must tell you that once I opened the cover of that book, it was painful for me to close it again. Nancy Farmer's words captivated me and I was therein the jungles of Mozambique. I finished it within days and was back in the library, searching for more titles by the same author. That was the day I was introduced to The House of the Scorpion.

This highly suspenseful novel contains year by year accounts of young Matteo Alcran, a clone of a Mexican drug lord. Farmer's imagery holds you in place as you follow Matt on his journeys through love, loss, and even into near death on several occasions. This book, like her others, will not let you go even a moment without wondering what's next.

The most intense parts of Matt's life are definitely the moments when he is hanging by a thin thread between living and dying. You are there, not just watching Matt; you are Matt as he awaits his fate.

Nancy Farmer seems to want us to think about what our future may hold, as far as how we are treating our relation ship with Mexico. We need to take into consideration what would be best for both the people of Mexico and ourselves, not just making our decision based on our own selfish views. Also, this book brings up the issue of clones and how they would be accepted by society. Since they don't really have parents, and yet they are a 'copy' of another persons genes.

Nancy Farmer's writing has won many awards, and for good reason. The suspense is incredible, and her great word choice creates vivid imagery that transports you to the worlds of her books. This is and awesome book that any who wonder what the future may hold should read. Intense; a must-read!

-DCW

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My thirteen yr old loved this book!!!

My daughter read the entire book in one day. She absolutely loved it! It has a futuristic sci-fi setting and is full of excitement. It had everything a teen would want in a book~ suspense, terror, sadness, flecks of love, and betrayal. My daughter highly recommends!

Great Book I loved it

This book is really good. It was just really good I wont say what happens but ill kinda tell you the plot. OK this kid named Matt is living in a house (hes 6 when it starts out) and he never goes outside and all he does is watch TV. And lives with this woman who isnt his mom. Well he meets some kids and sevral things happen. But he ends up meeting this old mexican drug lord who Matt is a clone of. I wont say what happens but I will say that it held my intrest for the whole thing (and for a book this long thats saying something).

The age level I would reccomend is mabye 9 and up. As long as the 9 year old isnt scared easy. You see whenever the Mexican Drug Lord catches an illegal immagrint trying to go over the border he kills them (woman and children too) and puts a computer chip in their brain and that turns them into eijiets (I think its actully spelled diffrently I cant spell, hey im just 14) and the eijiets work in the opioum (the drug he harvests) fields. and many of them die. Its a bit like the borg in Star Trek.

I know this sounds like that one british dude from the book on tape thing.
But if you liked this another good book is Sea of Trolls by Nancy Farmer.
Its a good book and in the edition of The House of the Scorpion I read it had a chapter of Sea of Trolls in the back.

Peace Out

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Excellent, until the end

The concepts and characters were wonderful, especially Mateo. The story was driving and interesting, making the reader root for our young protagonist. The whole universe was believable and richly designed. I was in love with this book until the strange and pointless ending that wasn't really and ending at all. There was just no more book at one point and I was left wondering what actually happened to Mateo and his friend.

A better conclusion would have gotten this one the full five stars.

An evaluation with ideas...

FANTASY
Farmer, N. (2002). The House of Scorpion. New York: Simon Pulse

Evaluation: This futuristic fantasy story was enjoyable at the start. The beginning is very intriguing. The Latino culture is part of the story with the use of Spanish words in text. Matt is a strong character and as he learns more, he becomes more interesting. The plot of the story at the beginning is very strong. Matt being viewed as an outcast constantly tries to prove others that he is "human" through his becoming more intelligent and musically gifted. The story takes a turn when it makes an attempt to involve more than just the cloning and the relationship with El Patron in its plot. The story has too many things going on with it after Matt finds out he is going to be used to save El Patron's life. Matt runs away and becomes part of a slave group of orphaned children that harvest plankton. Maria's mother is finding sanctuary at a motherhouse and Matt eventually finds her letting Maria know about her mother's whereabouts. Maria's mother advises Matt to return to El Patron's estate because he is the only one who can make a change in the way El Patron ran his estate. The Latino element is enjoyable in text, but as this chaos develops in the plot, it seems as if it is even too much to process in the story. This book is meant for junior high and high school readers. If a teacher were to use this book in a classroom, he/she may discuss science and the use of cloning. Touching on social studies, the teacher may examine a map having students come up with ideas as to where the opium fields were and how they divided the United States from Mexico. Teachers may also use this book to discuss what happens when the end of a story leaves you confused and without a solid end; in addition to what happens when the end of a book has too many different things going on and it becomes weak its ending. The book has won the National Book Award, Newberry Honor, and the Michael I. Printz Award for Excellence.

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