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House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer

Summary

Matteo Alacrán was not born; he was harvested. His DNA came from El Patrón, lord of a country called Opium -- a strip of poppy fields lying between the United States and what was once called Mexico. Matt's first cell split and divided inside a petri dish. Then he was placed in the womb of a cow, where he continued the miraculous journey from embryo to fetus to baby. He is a boy now, but most consider him a monster -- except for El Patrón. El Patrón loves Matt as he loves himself, because Matt is himself. As Matt struggles to understand his existence, he is threatened by a sinister cast of characters, including El Patrón's power-hungry family, and he is surrounded by a dangerous army of bodyguards. Escape is the only chance Matt has to survive. But escape from the Alacrán Estate is no guarantee of freedom, because Matt is marked by his difference in ways he doesn't even suspect.

380 pages, 6th grade and up

Discussion questions

  1. Why is the decision made not to "blunt" Matt's intelligence? Eduardo wonders if he has done Matt a favor and if he will "thank him for it later." Was Matt's life easier or more difficult because his intelligence was left intact? Would Matt have thanked Eduardo? Why do they blunt the intelligence of all of the other clones?
  2. As a clone, Matt is treated as inhuman by most people. Is a clone, created in a lab and born from a cow still a human, or something different? of a person's personality is genetic, and how much is environmental?
  3. There is a very clear purpose for Matt's life: to be the organ donor who keeps El Patron alive. Do you think all humans have a specific purpose? What about other animals?
  4. What parts of this story seemed most believable? Least believable?
  5. The country of Opium is dependent on eejits (clone labor) for their success. Are there examples in human history of groups of people in power taking advantage of "different" people for their own success or for the success of their country?
  6. When Matt is leaving Opium, he cries for Celia and Tam Lin and El Patron. Why does Matt cry for El Patron?
  7. "In an odd way it felt as though El Patron were still alive, and in one sense he was. For Matt still existed. As long as he survived, El Patron had not vanished form the world," (p. 252.) Do you agree that as long as Matt survives, El Patron does also?
  8. Some book reviewers felt that the ending of the story was too quick and that all of the problems were solved too easily right at the end. Do you agree or disagree with that? Would you like to be cloned? What would you use a clone for?

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