The House of the Scorpion

by Nancy Farmer

Reviewed by Yuri Kim

Rating: 3.3/4

1. Synopsis

Set in a futuristic society between the United States and Mexico where clones are routinely shot with intelligence-stunting injections and killed for their organs, The House of the Scorpion is a novel about Matt, the highly intelligent clone of El Patron, a 150-year old drug lord.  Because Matt is what he is, he is despised and looked at with disgust by other traditionally born humans.  He is isolated from the rest of the world save his caretaker, the view from his window, and a few books for most of his early life.  Soon he is discovered by the children from the big house, where his caretaker works to serve the family.  Matt goes through all kinds of things– from being kept prisoner by a bitter maid to being given a bodyguard who soon becomes a father figure to attending El Patron’s birthday parties– until it is revealed that he must die in order for El Patron to continue living.  Matt must escape the perilous grip of El Patron he is under and also find a way to save the countless victims of the new technology that reduces humans to robots.

2. Personal Response

For the summer reading assignment, I wanted something entertaining and easy to read and I had heard The House of the Scorpion fit both criteria.  I decided to see if what I heard was true.  I soon found out: yes, it indeed was true.  Despite the radical cultural differences between myself and Matt, I felt a deep emotional connection to him.  He was not portrayed as a little angel; he was sculpted realistically and believably which really helped me relate with him.  The treatment of the maids and bodyguards in the novel made me think about the way I treat such people, because not only did Farmer succeed in making Matt a relatable figure, but she also made it possible to sympathize with even the most minor characters.  I found it difficult to annotate this book partly because of its very succinct writing style, but largely because annotating slowed me down while I was so curious to find out what happened next.  The House of the Scorpion is the definition of a page-turner, and it provides a lot of interesting themes such as human cloning and nature versus nurture which left me thinking even after I finished the last page.

3. Non-personal Response

Although a good chunk of young adult science fiction novels are too fantastical to be believable, The House of the Scorpion incorporates so many tiny details about the futuristic technology that it is quite easy to think feasible.  The novel’s characters are also extremely well thought-out; they are multi-faceted and it is impossible to think of a single character as completely good or evil.  The author is talented in that the reader not only is emotionally impacted by the main character, but even the most minor ones.  The subject of the novel is also a very controversial one: human cloning, or, to be more general, technology.  Complementary to the extremely complex subject and characters, the writing style is very simple and succinct, making The House of the Scorpion a very accessible book for middle school and up.

In addition to human cloning, this novel also touches upon nature versus nurture.  Matt and El Patron have the same exact genetics, yet because of the different environments they grew up in, they became extremely different people.  Another major subject is the treatment of workers such as maids.  From early on in the novel, Celia is seen struggling and receiving undeservedly rude treatment from the children she toils for despite her hard work.

However, despite the wonderfully drawn out characters and thought provoking themes, The House of the Scorpion weakens at the end, where the plot strays too far and goes around in crazy directions too quickly.  Although the long stay in Mexico was required in order for the time between Matt’s escape and El Patron’s death to pass, much of the parts about the orphanage did not contribute to the main themes.  It would have been better if the portions were less drawn out where they did not have to be so descriptive.

4. Nancy Farmer & Other Notable Novels

Nancy Farmer, born 1941 in Phoenix, Arizona, is a famous author known for her children’s and young adult books.  She studied the natural sciences at the University of California, Berkeley and joined the Peace Corps, working in India.  Currently she lives in Menlo Park, California, with her husband Harold Farmer and son Daniel Farmer.

Farmer has earned multiple awards, including a 1995 Newbury Honor for The Ear, The Eye and The Arm, a 1997 Newbery Honor for A Girl Named Disaster, a 2002 National Book Award, a 2003 Buxtehuder Bulle, a 2003 Printz Honor, and a 2003 Newbery Honor for The House of the Scorpion.

Sources: http://www.nancyfarmerwebsite.com/bio.html
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