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Please try again later. I purchased this book for my young teen.
Fortunately I started reading it before she did. Not only is the language much too complex for a teen, but the content is dark and disturbing. This book will make good firewood. At least, these rationalists! It is perhaps this book's most frightening truth that he is correct. Octavian and his mother were sold into slavery in the s, in Boston, to The Novanglian College of Lucidity.
These men were rationalists, and sought to discover - once all of the niceties are removed - whether the Negro was inferior to the European. Octavian was taught "the arts and knowledge of the physical world Yet we see the detached scientist immediately in his caretakers, as Octavian describes an experiment whereby they drowned a dog to time its drowning, and another where they dropped alley-cats from high places to "judge the height from which cats no longer shatter," and yet another where they tried to teach a girl "deprived of reason and speech" the usage of verbs, and when the girl could not master verbs, they beat her "to the point of gagging and swooning.
While this is a book of fiction, it is useful to remember as the author calls us to at the end that while the College of Lucidity is a fictional entity, the kind of experiments they conducted indeed took place, and the question of inferiority was one that was much discussed. Octavian, with his mother, Mr. He became literate beyond their hopes, and could play the violin as a virtuoso. Without a doubt, his education was better than the vast majority of children his age, white or black.
I was very excited to read more M. I could think of numerous examples, showing that to take away the rights of some people was one step towards greater atrocities, but "because Nazis" is not a reasonable argument. Just a moment while we sign you in to your Goodreads account. Nothing after that disappointed, and I relished the language, the way in which the author showed vagaries of class and education in the Revolutionary period through speech and thought. But if you want an M. The character of Octavian is one of the most unique and fully realized I have ever encountered in young adult fiction. Where Things Come Back.
But then the College's benefactor dies, and a new benefactor arrives, represented by Mr. Sharpe, who presupposes the inferiority of the Negro and demands that Octavian's studies be changed As with all stories, once change is introduced, the stakes increase. Anderson tells this story with a remarkably sure hand, using spot-on eighteenth century diction and grammar as much as he could without losing his intended audience, young adults.
The majority of the story is told through the backward-looking eyes of Octavian himself, but Anderson also employs newspaper clippings and a variety of letters most entertaining were the set from the soldier, Evidence Goring, to his sister and mother to further authenticate the tale and ground it.
All of the characters are three-dimensional. The plot is handled with meticulous care, moving cautiously in the beginning, like an orchestral score, building with intensity to the moment of change, the crescendo which, not surprisingly, also occurs side-by-side with a telling of a part of the War. Setting his story against the backdrop of the Revolutionary War proved brilliant, for the irony of slave-owners sending slaves not promised freedom to fight in their stead for the cause of liberty, can be lost on no one.
This is without question one of the most moving books I have read in some time. The character of Octavian is one of the most unique and fully realized I have ever encountered in young adult fiction. That this won the National Book Award should be no surprise. A review of the writing-style would have helped me a lot before I purchased this book. It's acclaimed, the reviews are all superlative, so I purchase it with confidence for my nephew.
He started reading it but was not a huge fan. I think from his point of view, this book uses unfamiliar language to tell its story, presents many details that are downright shocking certainly to an eighth grader and provides little in the way of battle-scene action that would be Volume II. Makes you want to read it right? This book introduces the reader to a group of white American philosophers who are secretly observing a black youth named Octavian to ultimately discover whether Africans are a separate species from white people.
We ride right along with Octavian at this point and discover at the same time he does what his true worth is in this experiment and what the philosophers' true expectations are. Who should read this book? This is a perfect book for readers who stick with a story and appreciate that it takes time to set a scene and build a context.
As for Pox Party , I have read enough other reviews to know that I'm not alone in my feeling a little "off" in my reaction. Without a doubt, this is an important book. It's the kind that will do so well being taught in high school or college classrooms, where discussion and research are readily available.
It's not the kind to read before you go to bed, or to take to the beach. But it is destined to be a classic, and I feel a little strangely about that, too. Impressive, sophisticated, expansive in its scope, although not exactly a page-turner "old-timey" language is a challenge. Aug 17, Nick Fagerlund rated it really liked it.
The idea I keep turning around in my head is that it's in a complicated and fairly aggressive dialogue with some long-term trends in YA--correct me if you remember differently, but didn't most of the Revolutionary War novels largely ignore the question of slavery, and didn't most of the slave novels stay fairly isolated within the plantation atmosphere, and weren't the Gothic-influenced novels pretty much separated from historical context altogether? Anderson's seems to be aiming to pollute every part of historical YA fiction with And I want to briefly mention another thing he's doing, at least with the first part of the story: I think Octavian's early life is set up in such a way as to isolate and distill the horror of slavery itself.
And, okay, that's right there in the title, and every other evil of slavery comes crashing back in in the second half the book, but still, I think the method is worth acknowledging. Anyway, right, the story itself. Octavian is an interesting character and a weird-ass narrator: The pathos is intense, the plotting is actually pretty brilliant, and I really do find myself wondering what Octavian will ultimately do and what his reasons will be.
I think Anderson's doing a good job at asking questions that aren't, in any conventional way, answerable. And at wrecking poor Octavian's life. G othic, instead of just gothic. You know what I'm saying. Dec 14, Lee rated it it was amazing Shelves: At first I didn't know what to think of this book.
I was horrified but strangely compelled to continue reading this tale of a slave boy raised in an experimental fashion. By the end, my heart was completely captured and the following passage struck me in particular. And then they imprisoned me in darkness; and though there was no color there, I still was black, and they still were white; and for that, they bound and gagged me. Jan 31, Wealhtheow rated it really liked it Shelves: This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Some atrocities are studied as school children with such a narrow focus that the idea that the atrocity could happen again, to anyone, seems impossible.
The Holocaust is one--slavery in America is another. There is a glut of fiction written using each as its background, but few stories convey any immediacy or intimacy of the horror. Yolen's The Devil's Arithmatic is one that does; this is another.
The book begins as the reminiscence of a young prince. He is being raised by his mother, a foreign Some atrocities are studied as school children with such a narrow focus that the idea that the atrocity could happen again, to anyone, seems impossible. He is being raised by his mother, a foreign princess, and by a cadre of men known only by their numbers who have taken charge of his education.
The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the and millions of other books are available for instant access. The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume I: The Pox Party Paperback – January 22, Book 1 of 1 in the Astonishing Life of. The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume I: The Pox Party is an American historical novel for young adults written by M.T. Anderson.
From a very young age he is taught music, the classics, scientific reasoning. And he is never allowed to go outside. An intriguingly gothic tale, and one that abruptly increases in horror upon the revelation that the prince and princess are African slaves. Their pampered lives are part of an experiment--an experiment drastically changed by the start of the American revolution.
This is probably the most hard hitting piece of historical fiction about slavery I have ever read. It drew me in, got me comfortable with its exquisite style, carefully crafted language, and brilliant narrator, and then started punching me in the gut and never stopped. Although it is excellent, I cannot give this book five stars as I spent a good half of the novel feeling violent and ill. View all 4 comments. My state legislators have spent the past session ignoring the compelling problems such as unemployment, foreclosures, steep funding cuts to schools, and lack of access to health care, issues that make lives difficult every day.
Instead they addressed the non-problem of domestic unions. An amendment has been proposed, Constitutional amendment to provide that marriage between one man and one woman is the only domestic legal union that shall be valid or recognized in this State. It is expected tha My state legislators have spent the past session ignoring the compelling problems such as unemployment, foreclosures, steep funding cuts to schools, and lack of access to health care, issues that make lives difficult every day.
It is expected that the amendment will not receive sufficient votes in May to be enacted. Should it win the vote, it would be challenged on constitutional grounds, a contest it would not win, but which would cost the state a great deal of time and money. It is pointless, since there is already a law on the books forbidding gay marriage. So why propose it? I can think of no good reason. When my daughters asked about it, the best explanation I could give them is that some people wish to legislate away that which they do not like. That isn't adequate, though, because that law was already passed.
This is about depriving citizens of their rights. My town is one of several in the state which is offering the same benefits to spouses and domestic partners. The amendment's purpose is to permanently assign a less-than status to any domestic arrangement other than heterosexual marriage. It is an effort to strip citizens of some of their rights, which in my opinion is the worst thing a law can do. But I wondered, why, if I feel so strongly about this am I not putting up a yard sign, or writing letters to the editor?
The answer, at lest in part, is that I had a hard time articulating why this is wrong. I felt that it was, but was unable to express why. I could think of numerous examples, showing that to take away the rights of some people was one step towards greater atrocities, but "because Nazis" is not a reasonable argument. And then, off a stack of books waiting their turn for my attention, I pulled The Pox Party. My daughter probably loaned it to me a year ago, but I hadn't even looked closely at the cover. Octavian is a slave who is being raised in a learned home with all the advantages save one.
As a child his lack of freedom isn't very noticeable, for what child isn't constrained by the adults around them? As Octavian grows, and learns, and suffers, the reader feels his pain. This, truly is a fate worse than death because it never ends. Moreover, it taints and corrupts everyone. As slavery goes, one can't help thinking that Octavian has it pretty good: What Anderson shows us is that without freedom even "pretty good" is horrific.
Slavery infects the social interactions between Octavian and everyone else. It creates an imbalance of power that weighs down Octavian. He is surrounded by scientists, well-intentioned and sometimes even kind, not a one of whom can think straight, because of this huge, glaring WRONG that is ongoing every minute. Slavery is wrong because it denies the humanity of the one enslaved, but it also steals the humanity of everyone who goes along with it.
Everyone is lying, denying what they see in order to support a system that they cannot see a way around. Everyone is constantly being tested as to how they will treat their neighbor, and everyone is found wanting.
The truth of slavery is ugly. So here is my understanding, after reading this astonishing book: In order to be humane, we must recognize the humanity in others, and address it. Therefor, any effort to deny the humanity of others, such as, by stripping them of any of their rights, is not only to do a violence to them, but also to that which is humane within oneself. The only thing which makes any of us "good" is the effort to do good to others. I could write two very different reviews of Octavian Nothing.
There's the one where I gush and gush and practically drool over it - the raw emotion! Then there's the one where I sing its technical praises - how finely it creates the atmosphere of another time, and the use of language, and how it is a fine, fine example of the powers of historical fiction, and how Mr. Anderson does not underestimate the abilities of the young adult, but rather shows the I could write two very different reviews of Octavian Nothing. Anderson does not underestimate the abilities of the young adult, but rather shows them respect by offering such a fine specimen.
But really, those two reviews are both true, and it's the combination of the two - the fact that it is gushworthy, heartbreaking, and intellectually stimulating all at once - that makes it Good Book in every sense of the word. That said, I know it's not a book for everyone. It's not an easy read, and the beginning is more curious than entertaining. The book takes its time to unfold characters and world views. It uses a variety of formats to tell the story. Much of the humor comes late in the story, surrounded by pain. It's clever, and emotional.
It makes you think about how history is much messier than what ends up in your school curriculum, and more compelling. The audio version is very well done, with differences in voice for the different narrators and characters of the story. The reader has the kind of skill that makes the voice seem to take a back seat to the text, while subtly enhancing it. Some things are lost in audio, like Private Ev's delightful capitalization and punctuation, but the tone of voice makes up for it, and none of the emotion of the story is lost. Jul 25, Elisabeth rated it it was amazing Recommends it for: This is an amazing book--an exploration of some of the contradictory philosophies behind the American Revolution and a compelling coming-of-age tale at the same time.
Dark and difficult, but well worth the attention. Apr 02, Mike rated it liked it Shelves: Let me put it this way: From a marketing standpoint, it makes no sense that this book would get published, except that Feed was already very popular and Anderson has a built-in readership because of this. First and foremost, this book does have a compelling premise. I have never read or even heard of anything like this before. Moreover, this book is extremely ambitious, even more so than Feed. This is present not just in the language, not just in the epistolary elements in-universe, the novel is cobbled together from a bunch of primary sources, both from Octavian and from other people he meets , but also in what it attempts to portray.
Octavian, through the novel, deals with the realization that his entire life has consisted of being exploited by white people, and that all of his thought processes are a result of this exploitation. There is genuinely nothing like this in YA. Both make excellent use of first person to develop a distinct voice for their characters, and both have masterful worldbuilding.
Having read this, the comparisons to Ness feel even more acute, at least on paper. Both Ness and Anderson are noteworthy for their versatility, and for the vast range of voices that they try to write. In Chaos Walking, Ness invented dialects for groups of humans living on alien planets, and created voices for the Noise, an endless stream of thoughts that all people have. More Than This is written in third-person, but in that book, multiple characters have foreign accents that Ness captures authentically as well. On paper, this book is even more stunning in these regards than anything Ness has done.
Feed was a cyberpunk book that used FutureSlang very well in the narration. This is an historical fiction book, that uses authentic Victorian language. But I rank him as one of the best because he consistently takes risks that nobody else is willing to take.
This is the underlying difference between Ness and Anderson. Everything Ness does is in service of a great story, of new concepts and engaging thematic discussions. Everything Anderson does is in service of realism. Books should be connected to an emotional reality, and they should be grounded in real-world logic as much as possible. This is why I have very little patience for critics who define good and bad entirely by how much sense the story makes, why I spend little time nitpicking small plotholes and scientific inaccuracies. Getting things wrong on purpose is a tool. Anderson makes three huge sacrifices of artistry for realism, and they sink the novel for me.
First, the authentic Victorian language. And I wish Anderson had used it here. Second, the maddeningly slow pace of the novel. And as a work of fiction, Anderson choice the driest, most tedious way possible to tell this story. When an eventual climax does come, Anderson ruins it by making the third bad decision in the name of realism: Instead, much of this final act is written by farmers and soldiers that interact with Octavian. Other than brief interludes, Octavian narrates all of the first two acts of the book.
So to have the narration switch to less interesting and important towards the end is sudden and distracting. The reasons for this are, again, kind of spoilery, but in effect, Octavian reaches a huge turning point as a character and in his life right before these sections begin. The book feels incomplete without his narration in these areas. The last forty pages or so are when the themes come to the forefront, and since Octavian actually narrates this section, their impact is fully-felt.
And it is a genuinely horrifying section, perfectly encapsulating the horrors of slavery without feeling too preachy or insufferable. Anderson also has a wonderful eye for characterization, not just of Octavian, but also of the side characters. And I suppose I also admire the ambition of this book. I go out of my way to read YA books that take risks with the genre, and I can only think of a few books that take as many risks as this one.
There are reasons to read this book, especially if you like historical fiction. But if you want an M. Anderson book, Feed is the obviously superior choice. In Feed, realism happened to intersect with readable language and a powerful theme. Here, these elements clash, and Anderson makes the poor artistic decision to prioritize realism.
In the end, this book stands out a lot, but gives me mixed feelings on its quality. This review can also be found on my blog. A chilling slant on slavery and the American Civil war couched in modern spin. View all 3 comments. Apr 18, Simon rated it really liked it Shelves: There are some excellent books about slavery in the US that "tell all the truth but tell it slant. This is one of them. Another is The Known World.
Here we have a young African prince or so his mother tells him being raised by the wonderfully-named Novanglian College of Lucidity, a gro There are some excellent books about slavery in the US that "tell all the truth but tell it slant. Here we have a young African prince or so his mother tells him being raised by the wonderfully-named Novanglian College of Lucidity, a group of homegrown Boston philosophes , immediately prior to and during the Revolutionary War.
Octavian is taught Latin, Greek, music, mathematics, and so on, and is rigorously monitored in all ways everything he eats and excretes is weighed. He comes to learn that he is part of an experiment designed to test the intellectual capabilities of the "Africk nation," and that he is the chattel property of the head of the College, Mr. The book meanders and takes its time my one criticism of it and there is not, at least until the end, much of a story beyond the life of young Octavian.
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Learn how we rate. For Your Family Log in Sign me up. Is it OK for kids to read books outside their reading levels? Column 4 Our impact report: How Tech Is Changing Childhood. Want personalized picks that fit your family? Set preferences to see our top age-appropriate picks for your kids. Slavery-themed award-winner is a challenging teen read. Anderson Historical Fiction Sign in or join to save for later. Based on 4 reviews.
Based on 8 reviews. Get it now Searching for streaming and purchasing options Common Sense is a nonprofit organization. Your purchase helps us remain independent and ad-free. Get it now on Searching for streaming and purchasing options A lot or a little? The parents' guide to what's in this book. What parents need to know Parents need to know that this book has won many children's literary awards, including the National Book Award and a Michael L. Continue reading Show less.
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