A very beautiful story indeed, one that had just stunning visualization. At one point in the story, Matt, the main character, found himself on a mountain. The word choice used to describe this scene was truly breath-taking. It painted a vivid picture in the reader's mind. Another great choice was when the author was talking about the animal noises in the night. The author described it as 'wild music', which added a unique and enchanting element to the story. She also gave a great account of Matt's journey of gaining power and learning to control it. It was a fascinating tale of how he had to be careful not to let it get out of hand. Overall, this story was a wonderful read, full of beautiful descriptions and an engaging plot.

Mafia book-- but make it for kids!

I vividly remember reading and having a great affection for this particular mafia book some time ago. It was truly an engaging and captivating read. And now, since I am currently in the process of writing a mafia book of my own, I thought it would be an extremely enjoyable and interesting experience to revisit this earlier work. It's like taking a trip down memory lane and drawing inspiration from it. I'm curious to see how my perspective and understanding might have changed since the last time I read it. Maybe I'll discover new elements or details that I missed before, which could potentially enhance my own writing. It's going to be a fun and exciting exploration as I delve back into this mafia book with a fresh set of eyes and a creative mind.

This is a truly great Young Adult novel that is highly engaging, driven by a captivating plot and filled with interesting characters. I had the opportunity to recommend this book to a Senior who confessed that he had never read a book from cover to cover. To my pleasant surprise, he not only started reading it but also finished it! It has a unique appeal that definitely speaks to adolescent boys, as it combines the elements of brainy science and thrilling adventure.

Moreover, it is extremely timely as it incorporates aspects of DNA and cloning into the storyline. With these topics being such hot-button issues lately, it is refreshing and interesting to see them presented in a novel form. It allows readers to explore and思考 these complex concepts in an entertaining way.

I am eagerly anticipating the sequel (or at least it gives the impression that there should be one) and the movie adaptations! I have no doubt that they will further enhance the popularity and success of this already amazing novel.

The first two-thirds of this book were extremely well done.

I found myself completely invested in the story, and the writing was of a very high quality.

At its core, this book was rather dark and had some disturbing elements.

However, once the gang of boys was introduced, the level of enticement decreased.

The ending felt a bit rushed and was wrapped up a little too neatly and quickly.

I also had a concern regarding the fact that all the characters were Hispanic, yet the nicknames and most of the vocabulary were very white American.

This seemed a bit out of place considering the setting.

On the other hand, the concept of the clones and harvesting was quite interesting.

It reminded me of a middle-grade cartel version of the movie The Island.

Overall, this book is worth the read at any age.

4 Stars.

First of all, there is a whole lot going on in this novel.

It is outside my usual preferred genre. I typically prefer to read about real people and their real problems.

However, while this story is set in a futuristic and science fiction context, it does address age-old questions such as power, human relationships, and empathy for mankind.

The setting of the story takes place between Arizona and Northern Mexico. The author's repeated references to the Ajo Mountains and salt mines prompted me to conduct a little research on them.

Matt, the protagonist, is the kind of character that readers want to root for. He has been dealt a bad hand in life, having been created in a Petri dish, artificially inseminated, and born of a cow, solely to be used as spare parts to prolong the life of his original human, El Patron, who lives to be 148 years old.

This story raises numerous moral questions. Who should live? Who should die? Whose life is more important? Should poor people be condemned to a life of slavery or servitude? Are their lives less valuable? What happens when the government makes bad decisions in the name of the people? Who has the power to correct these wrongs?

We will be using this novel in our inquiry unit to explore and answer some of these questions. We will begin reading the book in November in our Advanced ELA class.

This is one of the near-perfect books crafted for young adults. It presents an exciting narrative that will have you eagerly flipping through the pages, while simultaneously making you ponder about the world we inhabit. It is a Newbery and Printz honor book and the winner of the National Book Award.

In "The House of the Scorpion," Nancy Farmer unfolds the tale of Matt, the clone of 142-year-old El Patron, the dictator of Opium, a country situated between the United States and Aztlan. In Opium, clones serve a single purpose: to prolong the lives of those whose DNA they carry by furnishing them with a source of spare parts. The brains of most other clones are obliterated at birth, but Matt's remains intact due to El Patron's orders. At the commencement of the novel, Matt is ignorant of all these facts. He is secluded and cared for by El Patron's cook, Celia, who loves him. He only becomes cognizant that he is distinct from others when he becomes a resident at El Patron's estate, where he is regarded not as a human, but as an unclean, soulless animal. Matt is educated and enjoys a life of luxury, yet is regarded with disgust by most of the estate's inhabitants. The exceptions are Celia, El Patron's bodyguard Tam Lin, and Maria, one of the children who discovered him. These three individuals perceive the humanity within him and教导 him to be a good person.

Farmer masterfully constructs the world in which Matt lives, from the cloning technology to the old-fashioned ways on the estate, which is designed to replicate the Mexico of El Patron's youth over 100 years ago. El Patron has amassed his fortune by capturing Mexicans attempting to cross the border into the United States and employing them to cultivate opium. To ensure their captivity, implants in their brains render them completely devoid of free will, to the extent that they will not eat or drink without being instructed to do so. The threat of being transformed into one of these "eejits" is sufficient to enable El Patron to control others. The reader's interest is maintained by uncovering, along with Matt and from his perspective, the inner workings of Opium, his purpose in life, and his ultimate destiny. With the assistance of Celia and Tam Lin, he flees to Aztlan, where he is no longer treated as subhuman, but is captured and compelled to labor with other orphans under the control of guards called "keepers" who unrelentingly practice behavioral control methods to keep the young workers at the plankton factory in line. This is a coming-of-age story with a difference.

"House of the Scorpion" is a spine-chilling story as Farmer depicts a world that might just be plausible. Cloning is already a reality. There are individuals in today's world who are as invisible to the larger society as the orphans. Child slavery persists. Environmental degradation is taking place. Matt's escape from his future as a clone offers the reader hope that good will prevail in this world as well.

Nancy Farmer has an extraordinary talent for crafting action-packed novels that are set in truly wild and fascinating places. In this particular case, the future is under the rule of a Mexican druglord who takes the extreme step of cloning himself. His intention is to harvest organs from these clones whenever he requires them. The book then closely follows the life of one such clone.

Science and social issues intersect in Nancy Farmer's works. Those who attempt to flee across the Mexican border into the U.S. are captured in a new country that is controlled by the druglord. Here, they have a computer chip implanted in their brains, transforming them into complacent slaves who work tirelessly until they drop dead. This book is specifically targeted at teens. There is an abundance of content within it that can lead a book group into a diverse range of discussions. Topics such as slavery, border patrol, and cloning are just the beginning. It can be compared with other teen books like Feed by Anderson, The Uglies/Pretties series by Westerfield, or The Ear The Eye and The Arm by Farmer herself, which offers a look into the future of Africa.

This book contains scenes that are truly unique and that you will never encounter on TV or read about in any other place. Despite the fact that the setting is in the future and involves highly imaginative situations, the book is written with such skill that it is not at all difficult to envision the scenes vividly. It is an extremely interesting read that is sure to captivate the minds of its readers.

This book was extremely slow and rather boring at the very beginning.

It seemed to drag on and on, making it a bit of a struggle to get through those initial pages. However, as I persisted and continued reading, something remarkable happened.

I gradually started to really enjoy it. The story began to unfold in a more engaging way, and the characters became more developed and interesting.

I would highly recommend this book to other people. But here's the thing, if you do decide to pick it up and read it, give it some time.

Don't be too hasty in deciding that you don't like it. It might just be that the beginning is a bit of a setup for something truly wonderful that lies ahead. So, be patient and give this book a chance to surprise you.

I feel like I need to explain myself a little more in detail.

Why on earth did I give this highly popular, multi-awarded, and widely hailed as a dystopian masterpiece just one star?

Well, to put it simply, it was HELLA boring.

The characters? They were as dry as a desert. There was no depth or complexity to them. The plot? It seemed completely pointless, lacking any real direction or purpose. And the so-called "action"? It was slower than a snail's pace.

I picked up this book with great excitement. I have a deep love for dystopian literature, and I had high hopes that a book with a Printz and/or Newberry award would at least have excellent writing. But boy, was I wrong. There was absolutely nothing special about the way this book was written. The prose was just as flat as everything else in it. Not a single character stood out as unique, except perhaps for Ton-Ton, whose stuttering was the only thing that gave him a modicum of distinction.

Normally, if I dislike a book this much from the very beginning, I would stop reading by the first half. But in this case, I wanted to like it so badly. So many reviews had lauded this novel as one of the greatest dystopian books ever written. But quite frankly, I just couldn't see why. It took me three-quarters of the book to finally come to the realization that nothing of any significance was going to happen. And by that point, I figured I might as well just finish it. But even as I was pleading with the story to end, it stubbornly refused to. It was agonizingly slow and torturously drawn out.

Save yourself the headache and boredom. Don't waste your time on this book.

AMAZING AMAZING AMAZING!!

I really, truly loved it. It was an absolute masterpiece. The concept was so original, completely unlike anything I've ever read before. It had me on the edge of my seat from start to finish, filled with intrigue and mystery.

Not only was it captivating, but it was also extremely thought-provoking. It made me stop and think about various aspects of life and society in a whole new way.

Overall, it was just an unforgettable experience. It's like a work of genius that will stay with me forever.

In a way, it sorta reminded me of Unwind by Neal Shusterman. That's also an amazing book, by the way.

But this one has its own unique charm and appeal. I loved loved loved it with all my heart.

So, if you haven't read it yet, I highly recommend that you do. You won't be disappointed!

House of the Scorpion was, in my opinion, an outstanding book.

I was particularly drawn to how Matt, despite being a clone, strived to live a normal life like anyone else. As I delved into the story, I couldn't help but feel a profound sense of sympathy for him. The way everyone regarded him as a beast was truly heart-wrenching. I also felt a great deal of discomfort regarding the process used to create Matt.

Thankfully, as the book progresses, Matt's treatment improves as people gradually learn to accept him. However, I firmly believe that the use of eejits is abhorrent. It is simply not fair to sacrifice someone's essence just to increase productivity. I had the distinct impression that Matt was deceived and led to believe that certain individuals had his best interests at heart when, in reality, they did not.

Matt is a clone of El Patron, yet they are polar opposites. El Patron is a greedy and despicable person who cares only for himself, while Matt is a kind-hearted kid who genuinely cares for others. I thoroughly enjoyed how Matt managed to find some true friends towards the end of the book.

Overall, it was an excellent book with a satisfying conclusion and a captivating plot that explored the life of a clone. I awarded this book 5 stars because it provided a fascinating simulation of what a clone's life might be like, along with a wealth of information about the cloning process.

The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer is a captivating read that has received numerous accolades, such as being a National Book Award Winner, Printz Honoree, and Newbery Honoree.

The first two-thirds of the book are truly riveting. It's not just a typical clone story. Matt, a clone, is defined by those around him as livestock and a source of body parts. However, Nancy Farmer takes him on a journey of self-discovery and self-awareness, allowing him to realize that he is a human being.

Thankfully, there are other aspects that distinguish this novel from similar ones. It is set in a future version of Mexico, and the country's life is richly and authentically portrayed. Additionally, it's a story of a drug lord and his enslaved family, with cloning being part of El Patrón's plan for immortality. The relationship between Matt and his master is where the story shines the most, raising thought-provoking questions.

However, the last third of the book, specifically the escape part, was a bit of a letdown for me. I found myself bored, and I didn't think those pages connected well thematically with the rest of the story. New characters were introduced too late, and anti-socialist rants seemed out of place.

Thankfully, the ending did save the book. It brought the story full circle to El Patrón and was satisfying. Despite the middle part, I might still reread The House of the Scorpion in the future, but I'll definitely skip over a big portion of it.

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