Matt is six years old when he discovers that he is different from other children, from other people. To most people Matt isn't a boy, but a beast, dirty and disgusting. But to El Patron, lord of a country called Opium, Matt is the guarantee of eternal life. El Patron loves Matt as he loves himself - for Matt is himself. They share the same DNA. As Matt struggles to understand his existence and what that existence truly means, he is threatened by a host of sinister and manipulating characters, from El Patron's power-hungry ...
Read More
Matt is six years old when he discovers that he is different from other children, from other people. To most people Matt isn't a boy, but a beast, dirty and disgusting. But to El Patron, lord of a country called Opium, Matt is the guarantee of eternal life. El Patron loves Matt as he loves himself - for Matt is himself. They share the same DNA. As Matt struggles to understand his existence and what that existence truly means, he is threatened by a host of sinister and manipulating characters, from El Patron's power-hungry family to the brain-deadened eejits and mindless slaves that toil Opium's poppy fields. Surrounded by a dangerous army of bodyguards, Matt longs for escape. But even escape is no guarantee of freedom because Matt is marked but his difference in ways that he doesn't even suspect.
Read Less
Add this copy of The House of the Scorpion to cart. $4.70, very good condition, Sold by ThriftBooks-Reno rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Reno, NV, UNITED STATES, published 2004 by Simon & Schuster.
Add this copy of The House of the Scorpion to cart. $15.94, very good condition, Sold by Yare Books rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Great Yarmouth, NORFOLK, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2003 by Simon and Schuster.
futuristic...with cloning as the "norm" for rich people...poor people as always the peasants....the dilema comes from the clone's point of view...wonderful book,,,unusually dark and realistic for a young adults book...but thought provoking all-the-same....April M
lunafish
Sep 23, 2009
I loved The House of the Scorpion. It is science fiction that reads like an adventure story, with edge-of-your-seat plot twists and captivating suspense. Farmer does an excellent job of creating vibrant, believable characters and showing both the good and bad traits of each one. I devoured every chapter, and I loved the twist at the end.
BaJaMomma
Feb 21, 2009
House of Scorpion - STING ME!
Wow! What an adventure(s)! Nancy Farmer is brilliant in exposing controversial issues in a colorful, very alive, action packed novel. Written for a young teen audience... well maybe. Adults of any age will be captivated.
Topics exposed include; cloning, racism, prejudice, drug abuse, and government mind control. The characters are so real they seem to walk off the page.
Hebes
Oct 31, 2007
A terrific book for all ages!
I read this book years ago and I'm still reading it. The story line is riveting; you can't put it down. It's also unexpected, and some parts may really surprise you. Even though it's about a young boy, the issues it explores make it really interesting. This book is set in the future, and the author has an interesting idea of how the world would be like. It's not like Brave New World or 1984 that are a bit 'extreme', it's more realistic. The boy, Matteo Alacran, is a very unique protagonist. He's a clone, for starters, and he lives in a country that's actually ruled by a drug lord, which is present-day Mexico. The book forces you to wonder about the morality of cloning people, and once we clone them, what do we do with them? What is the purpose of a clone? The author makes other predictions about the future world, such as Nigeria being No.1 because of its diamonds. Anyway, this book is really cool and will make you think about it long after you read it. I always tell the story orally to people who I know can't be bothered to read it, and they're always mesmerized! The author's style is really good too. It's impossible to describe this book as 'boring'.
