The House Of The Scorpion
Ratings77
Average rating3.9
With undertones of vampires, Frankenstein, dragons' hoards, and killing fields, Matt's story turns out to be an inspiring tale of friendship, survival, hope, and transcendence. A must-read for teenage fantasy fans.
At his coming-of-age party, Matteo Alacrán asks El Patrón's bodyguard, "How old am I?...I know I don't have a birthday like humans, but I was born."
"You were harvested," Tam Lin reminds him. "You were grown in that poor cow for nine months and then you were cut out of her."
To most people around him, Matt is not a boy, but a beast. A room full of chicken litter with roaches for friends and old chicken bones for toys is considered good enough for him. But for El Patrón, lord of a country called Opium—a strip of poppy fields lying between the U.S. and what was once called Mexico—Matt is a guarantee of eternal life. El Patrón loves Matt as he loves himself for Matt is himself. They share identical DNA.
Series
Featured Series
2 primary books#1 in Matteo Alacran
Matteo Alacran is a 2-book series with 2 released primary works first released in 2002 with contributions by Nancy Farmer.
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This dystopian, young-adult novel is utterly fascinating, disturbing, and engrossing. The future world Nancy Farmer has created is disturbingly believable, but the ultimate trajectory of the book is one of resilience and hope. The style is very readable but also gives children and young adults a lot of credit in being able to take on a challenging book.
I read this a lot in 5th grade and middle school. I remember this was my favorite book. It really took me to other places and it made me love reading more because before then when I visualized book as I read them it was never so vivid and clear. I finally got my hands on the sequel part way through middle school and I remember enjoying it too.
Coming of age story. Good, not great. Difficult to imagine some scenes as author provides little to no details
I enjoyed the blend of Spanish and English with their respective cultures. I enjoyed the world in which the story takes place and wish to know more about it.
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