Nancy Farmer's The House of the Scorpion deals with several difficult concepts, including pollution, cloning, the drug trade, illegal immigration, and human slavery. In this dystopian future, a strip of land between the United States and Mexico, called Opium, is a powerful drug-producing area where El Patrón runs the largest estates and will do anything to stay in power.
As a piece of science fiction, the novel deals with cloning and human subjugation using computer chips implanted in the brain. Students would benefit from learning about the relationship between science fiction and dystopian fiction. Reading The House of the Scorpion alongside other novels such as Fahrenheit 451 and Brave New World will enhance students' understanding of the two genres and why they are so closely connected.
Students might also benefit from an in-depth discussion of the topics that arise in the novel, such as the drug trade, illegal immigration, and pollution, especially as they concern two of the countries involved in the book's plot: the United States and Mexico. Such a discussion would allow students to have a stronger understanding of the history of these issues and the motivations behind the author's depicting them.
Summary
Matteo Alacrán is a clone. He lives in a country called Opium headed by the powerful and dangerous El Patrón, who will do anything to stay in power, such as cloning his own DNA. In the eyes of almost everyone around him, Matt is a monster. But El Patrón loves him as a member of his own family.
As Matt slowly discovers the purpose behind his existence, he learns that the only way he can be free is to escape the Alacrán Estate. He faces danger at every turn, but it's his sole chance for survival.
Content Warning
This novel contains depictions of violence, murder, slavery, drug trafficking, cloning, and illegal immigration.
Movies
A movie adaptation is in production, but no release date has been scheduled.
Available from Prestwick House:
The House of the Scorpion