Review Detail

Reader reviewed by Amanda

"The House of the Scorpion" is a book you will not want to put down. It is set in the future in the tiny strip of land between the United States and Aztlan(Mexico). It is called Opium and is run by a drug lord name El Patron, who is about 140 years old. Every so many years, he gets computer chips put into his brain to keep him sharp.

The workers in his fields are called eejits. They were once people, but now are as robots because of a computer chip put into their brain to serve his one function, harvest his opium. They can't even drink without being told. They are considered lower than animals and are fed on pellets.

A few years before, El Patron had a clone made of him for the purpose of a perfect donor when he needed an organ in order to stay alive. His name was Matt. Matt was raised in a house in the poppy fields by Celia, a woman El Patron knew. When he was four, an older girl and boy saw him through a window. They had a girl of Matt's age with them. She instantly befriends Matt.
When the three children turn to leave, he jumps out the window and is injured by the glass. The two children carry him to El Patron's house, where they fix his wounds and throw him into a room alone for six months because they found out he was a clone. When Celia finds him, El Patron insists they live with him. There, Matt is given a bodyguard and learns how to run the poppy fields. It won't be easy for Matt since he is a clone in a world where clones are regarded as something to be feared. There is much more I could tell you, but the rest you'll have to read.

I love this book because it's so interesting. You learn a little of the climate of Mexico. It shows how a clone may be treated in the real world. I like to read how brave Matt was and how he stood up for himself. The adventures he has are very interesting. It's no surprise this book won three awards.