CompleteMartialArts.com - The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Vol. 1: The Pox Party
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List Price: $17.99
Our Price: $13.60
Your Save: $ 4.39 ( 24% )
Availability: N/A
Manufacturer: Candlewick
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Average Customer Rating:  
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Binding: Hardcover
Format: Bargain Price
Label: Candlewick
Manufacturer: Candlewick
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 368
Publication Date: 2006-09-12
Publisher: Candlewick
Reading Level: Young Adult
Release Date: 2006-09-12
Studio: Candlewick
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Editorial Reviews:
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A gothic tale becomes all too shockingly real in this mesmerizing magnum opus by the acclaimed author of FEED.
It sounds like a fairy tale. He is a boy dressed in silks and white wigs and given the finest of classical educations. Raised by a group of rational philosophers known only by numbers, the boy and his mother — a princess in exile from a faraway land — are the only persons in their household assigned names. As the boy's regal mother, Cassiopeia, entertains the house scholars with her beauty and wit, young Octavian begins to question the purpose behind his guardians' fanatical studies. Only after he dares to open a forbidden door does he learn the hideous nature of their experiments — and his own chilling role in them. Set against the disquiet of Revolutionary Boston, M. T. Anderson's extraordinary novel takes place at a time when American Patriots rioted and battled to win liberty while African slaves were entreated to risk their lives for a freedom they would never claim. The first of two parts, this deeply provocative novel reimagines the past as an eerie place that has startling resonance for readers today.
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating:
Summary: Accolade for Good Omens
Comment: Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman is a fictional story about the end of the world which, according to one Agnes Nutter, Witch, is next Saturday, but the Antichrist has been misplaced. In order to stop the end of the world from happening, an unlikely team comprised of an angel, a demon, a witch, a witch finder, and four kids must try to find the misplaced Antichrist and put a stop to the Apocalypse. What might otherwise be a pretty dark story is made light by the humor that can be found throughout Good Omens. The demon Anthony Crowley's first name is mentioned only a few times throughout the book; one of those times is in direct reference to the song "Frog he would a-wooing go" which talks about a frog named Anthony Rowley. The reference is then made clear when Crowley then says "Hey-ho" in reference to the chorus of the song. While some of the humor may be missed by those who are not as well read as its authors, Good Omens is jam packed with allusions and written in a way as to still be understandable and engaging even if you can only catch some of the humor.
Customer Rating: 
Summary: Shine a light on the darkness
Comment: I read Octavian Nothing this weekend. In a night, actually, in one enormous fascinated appalled gulp. Now I understand why everyone was talking about it. Slave narratives have alway been political, so using a fictional one (be it never so fantastical and gothick) to illumine the history we don't see as much is lovely. This is not a book for hagiography, not of people or nations. It is about Jefferson, although it never says so. It is like a darker, older version of Johnny Tremaine. People die, and are sold into slavery, and you ask yourself if this books shares DNA with Lemony Snickett, and yet it is a really compelling corner of Americana. I put the sequel on my wishlist. I expect we will end up in Halifax.
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Summary: Tedious and pretentious
Comment: The premise of this book (a child raised by 19th century natural scientists as an "experiment") is so provocative that I grabbed it off the bookstore shelf and couldn't wait to read it. The description of Octavian's early life, and the unraveling of who the people are and why they are doing it, is fascinating. After the initial shock and curiosity, however, the plot plods along tediously. The writing is meant to evoke 19th century prose style, but it comes off as pretentious and I found it difficult to read. Once Octavian comes of age, I couldn't have cared less. I forced myself to get to the end, on a camping trip where I had nothing else to read, and will not be picking up any sequels.
Disclaimer: I am an adult and a rapid reader, I can't imagine the intended audience of middle-schooler's getting through this book.
Customer Rating:
Summary: "F" ed up.
Comment: I knew some of the historical references when I read this but not all. This book goes to a dark dark place. I love the argument at the end. This book is a powerhouse.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Interesting, but could have been better.
Comment: M. T. Anderson, The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, vol. I: The Pox Party (Candlewick, 2006)
While The Pox Party does take a while to get underway, it's quite an absorbing little book once it does. Anderson gives us the beginnings of the American Revolution as seen through the eyes of Octavian, an educated slave from Boston who only gradually becomes aware that he is a slave. Once he does, things start moving. Note that this seems to be a love-it-or-hate-it book, and the most common factor that I've found is the writing style, which is consciously archaic; if flowery language bogs you down, this definitely isn't a book for you. I did find that Anderson's writing style here hindered the pace at various times, and it took me a great deal longer to read this than it would have had he done even a little streamlining. I plan on reading the next book, but I probably won't look forward to it quite as much as I did to this one, now that I know what's coming. ***
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