The House of the Scorpion

Nancy Farmer's all-too-believable dystopia is the setting for the story of Matteo Alacran, born a clone of the evil El Patron, ruler of Opium. As Matt grows, so does his understanding of his purpose (to provide renewal body parts for El Patron) and the things he needs to do to stay alive in a society based on the abuse of brain-damaged slaves who tend the opium fields. As the suspense builds, narrator Raœl Esparza has convincing command of several languages and many accents for the adults, and he perfectly captures the arrogant intonations of entitled teenagers who, like most of the story's characters, consider Matt to be lower than an animal. Even amid Matt's most horrifying predicaments Esparza delivers brief moments of ironic or childlike wit in this thought-provoking story. R.H.H. (c) AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine

May 17, 2004
In our Best Books citation, PW
wrote, "In this eerily realistic depiction of society 100 years hence, the wealthy class harvests the organs of clones to prolong their lives. Farmer explores vital and soul-searching questions about what it means to be human." Ages 11-up.

This world is an arid wasteland on either side of the Mexican/U.S. border. But 50 years from now it is a separate country: the land of Opium, a vast drug- producing territory ruled by the 140-year-old El Patron and worked exclusively by human clones. Only Matt, kept alive because he is himself a clone of El Patron, can restore its humanity. Robert Ramirez's narration echoes Matt's awakening to the evil around him and deepens the suspense of his attempted escape. As he hurtles through the land of Opium, Ramirez leaps from character to character, each one stranger and strangely dearer than the last. Ramirez's voice is subtly attuned to the humanity in all of them, even the clones. Winner of the National Book Award, The House of the Scorpion is a great mix of sci-fi, adventure, and powerful human values. P.E.F. Winner of the National Book Award, 2002 (c) AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine