The House of the Scorpion

by Nancy Farmer

Reviewed by Timothy Cho

Fall 2016

REVIEW: The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer

ISBN: #0689852231

THE STORY:

Matt Alacran, the clone of a powerful Mexican drug dealer, lives on the American-Mexican border with his caretaker, Celia, sometime in the near future. This time in the future is a time of relative stability, since El Patron, the man that Matt is the clone of, has controlled the drug trafficking on the US-Mexico border. Throughout the book, Matt questions his existence. One event that made him think about his origins was when his worst enemy, Tom, showed him a clone about to be killed. This made Matt think about where he was from. He asks his mentor, Tam-Lin, about this issue. Tam-Lin tells him how he was “made to exist”, and

he also helps Matt with his education. However, Matt is not satisfied. He tries to use reasoning to find out more of his relationship with El Patron. More events happen, and Matt has a love interest with a girl named Maria, who is the daughter of a senator from the United States. After about five years, El Patron dies. Matt was supposed to be killed, since there was no use for him, because clones in this society are used for transplants. However, Tam-Lin helps him escape to Mexico. In Mexico, Matt meets two boys, and he becomes friends with them. Throughout the book, Matt learns more about El Patron through culture, friends, and family. (226)

MY OPINION:

When I first opened the book to the contents, I thought the book was going to be very confusing, since along with the contents is a list of characters. The list of characters made me think that the plot of the story was very complex. As I read to the fifth chapter, I found that the book was actually not that hard to understand, and that it describes a futuristic society in a way that I could fully understand. What I mean by that is that there are no strange terms that people do not use today. The author of the book used vocabulary in a way that makes readers know exactly what idea the writer is conveying. However, one weakness of this book is the connection of the plot, which makes comprehension difficult, or maybe impossible to younger readers. I would recommend this book for middle-school and early  high-school students. Overall, the book was good, so I rate it eight stars out of ten. (165)

STUDY QUESTIONS AND VOCABULARY:

FIRST SECTION

1. What is the conflict of the story?

1a. The conflict of the story is when Matt, the main character, finds out that he is a clone, and that people despise him. (p.15)

2. Why do people in this futuristic world despise clones?

2a. In this world, most clones have their minds destroyed, so they do disgusting things. However, Matt is an exception to this rule. (p. 27)

3. Why does El Patron love Matt?

3a. Matt is the clone of El Patron, and he is El Patron’s guarantee to “eternal life”. (p.57)

4. Why are Matt’s caretakers treating Matt so well?

4a. They are scared of El Patron. (p, 62)

5. Why does Matt demand a “birthday kiss” at his birthday party?

5a. Matt thought that he should be treated equally as everyone else, and he also wanted Maria to be his girlfriend. (p. 89)

blunt (p. 4)

voluminous (p. 13)

bleat (p. 39)

fluted (p.61)

contempt (p. 90)

MIDDLE SECTION

6. Why did Matt want to talk to Rosa after she was changed into an eejit?

6a. Matt though that he could “wake up” Rosa, because it seemed horrible to him that she changed. (p. 135)

7. Why did the writer of  “A History of Opium” call El Patron “evil, vicious, and self-serving”?

7a. This is because he did drug dealing for money. (p. 137)

8. What is El Patron’s “dragon hoard”, and why does El Patron want to keep it?

8a. The “dragon hoard” is an expression in this book, and El Patron’s hoard is all the wealth he has. He guards this since he is a greedy person. (p. 149)

9. Why did Matt decide to play Mozart’s “Turkish March” on the piano while thinking about El Patron’s failing brain?

9a. It made him feel like he has control over his life. (p. 162)

10. How did Maria think that Matt was not going to live a long life?

10a. People in this futuristic society use their clones for transplants. (p.167)

paranoid (p. 128)

silhouette (p. 158)

tirade (p.159)

sham (p. 173)

sedative (p. 180)

FINAL SECTION

11. Why does it make sense to Matt to put a computer chip in a horse’s brain?

11a. Horses are not as smart as humans. (p. 217)

12. Why was there the smell of vomit on the hovercraft?

12a. Fidelito has airsickness. (p. 220)

13. Why does Jorge teach the boys at the plankton factory about “self-criticism”?

13a. Jorge believes that it is for the good of the people. (p. 231)

14. How does Ton-Ton think?

14a. Ton-Ton thinks slowly, but he is very thorough. (p. 242)

15. Who suffered an asthma attack at the Colorado River?

15a. Matt suffered an asthma attack.

tycoon (p. 201)

wuss (p. 218)

siesta (p. 230)

oleander (p. 248)

euphoria (p. 266)