Module 8-The House of the Scorpion

Module i-Fantasy and Science Fiction

-Science Fiction

The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer

ISBN:  978-0-6898-5222-0

Audience (according to Publisher’s Weekly):  Ages 11-14

Farmer, N. (2002).  The house of the scorpion.  New York,   
     NY:  Atheneum Books for Young Readers.

Pricing (as of 10/12):

*Amazon:      Hardcover:  $13.23

                        Paperback: $9.99

                        Kindle:        $9.99

                        Audio, CD:  $34.19

Book Summary

            Set in a dystopian area of the world known as Opium, Matt comes of age while living in seclusion with a surrogate mother.  When he is transferred to the Big House, owned by drug lord El Patron, he discovers the truth about himself—he is a clone, created so that his organs can be harvested at a later date in order to prolong the life of his cell donor, the evil El Patron.  After dealing with isolation, imprisonment, violence and the like, Matt determines that escape is a necessity and finds help in his “mother,” Celia, and his tutor/bodyguard, Tam Lin.  But escape does not result in a better life.  Finding himself in the area of the world formerly known as Mexico, Matt faces more imprisonment, hard work, and is nearly killed.  Respite finally comes with his friend/love interest, Maria, and her mother Esperanza.  In the novel’s conclusion, Matt returns to Opium to find El Patron dead and is able to take over the leadership role. Once established in that role, he attempts to create a better life for all who live there.

APA Reference

Farmer, N. (2002).  The house of the scorpion.  New York, NY:  Atheneum Books for
     Young Readers.

Impressions

            Younger readers will enjoy the fast paced adventures of Matt as he strives to escape captivity and the fate that awaits him.  They will continue to follow him anxiously as he lives on a communal work farm, is beaten, starved, and very nearly dies.  Those same younger readers will cheer when he finds a home with Maria and Esperanza and will be thrilled when he returns and takes control of Opium.  However, the circumstances of his birth and the future of harvesting organs may not be easily understood by the 11-14 year old age group.  High school students, however, would find this book full of heavy discussion material:  issues of cloning, organ harvesting, gene manipulation, communal/Marxist ways of life, slavery, immigration, etc. are all readily apparent throughout Farmer’s work. 

Both age groups will see well-developed characters in Matt, Maria, and Tam Lin.  The slaves known as “eejits” will give both young and old cause to stop and think about brain implants and scientific interference.  Even the youngest reader will notice the profound change in Rosa after her implant is in place.  Plot development is fast-paced and exciting, and for most readers, this will keep them reading until the end, which conversely seems to be rather abrupt.

Professional Reviews

            << Farmer's (A Girl Named Disaster; The Ear, the Eye and the Arm) novel may be futuristic, but it hits close to home, raising questions of what it means to be human, what is the value of life, and what are the responsibilities of a society. Readers will be hooked from the first page, in which a scientist brings to life one of 36 tiny cells, frozen more than 100 years ago. The result is the protagonist at the novel's center, Matt-a clone of El Patrón, a powerful drug lord, born Matteo Alacrán to a poor family in a small village in Mexico. El Patrón is ruler of Opium, a country that lies between the United States and Aztlán, formerly Mexico; its vast poppy fields are tended by eejits, human beings who attempted to flee Aztlán, programmed by a computer chip implanted in their brains. With smooth pacing that steadily gathers momentum, Farmer traces Matt's growing awareness of what being a clone of one of the most powerful and feared men on earth entails. Through the kindness of the only two adults who treat Matt like a human-Celia, the cook and Matt's guardian in early childhood, and Tam Lin, El Patrón's bodyguard-Matt experiences firsthand the evils at work in Opium, and the corruptive power of greed ("When he was young, he made a choice, like a tree does when it decides to grow one way or the other... most of his branches are twisted," Tam Lin tells Matt). The author strikes a masterful balance between Matt's idealism and his intelligence. The novel's close may be rushed, and Tam Lin's fate may be confusing to readers, but Farmer grippingly demonstrates that there are no easy answers. The questions she raises will haunt readers long after the final page. Ages 11-14. (Oct.)

Roback, D., Brown, J. M., Britton, J., & Zaleski, J. (2002). The house of the scorpion. (book). Publishers Weekly, 249(26), 80. Retrieved from http://www.publishersweekly.com.

            <<… Farmer has shown great imagination in creating a unique and plausible view of the future with enough connections to current issues to make her vision particularly disquieting. Throughout the story, she has raised questions about the meaning of life and death and about the nature of one's responsibility for others, and in so doing, has created a thought-provoking piece of science fiction.

Scotto, B. (2002). The house of the scorpion. Horn Book Magazine, 78(6), 753-754. Retrieved from http://www.hbook.com.

Library Uses

            Elementary and secondary librarians could use The House of the Scorpion in order to illustrate the concept of “dystopian” literature.  Secondary librarians should consider the title for use in a school book club that encourages spirited discourse and debate on contemporary issues such as illegal immigration and medical ethics.  Coupled with titles such as Double Helix, The Bones of Time, and The Genesis Code, high school students should be encouraged to research current opinions and laws regarding cloning and gene manipulation.  A librarian should have those materials available for their use in order to facilitate more fact-based discussions.