For this next title I jumped from Discworld to 18th century Boston. Second in a series of fifteen.
Anderson, M.T. (2006). The Astonishing Life Of Octavian Nothing, Traitor To The Nation, Vol 1: The Pox Party. Cambridge, MA: Candlewick Press. 351 pages.
Summary and Evaluation: Octavian lives in a mansion, along with his mother, and he is told they are both African royalty. Learned men tutor him in French, Greek, Latin, music and more, and he leads a quiet life, sequestered from the political turmoil of late 18th century Boston. But gradually Octavian comes to realize two things: he is a slave, and his owners have a purpose in mind for him.
The number designations some characters use instead of names (‘Dr. 09-01′), along with the cloistered setting of much of the novel, reminded me of The Prisoner. The 18th century language and diction that the author uses put me in mind of Patrick O’ Brian’s Aubrey/Maturin series, while the slow-moving plot, steadily-increasing suspense and tension, along with a narrator unaware of danger that the reader sees, is reminiscent of the stories of H.P. Lovecraft. And the author clearly intends the book to be an examination of race in 18th century Colonial America and the attendant questions of what liberty is and just who is intended to obtain it as a result of the Revolution. All of which is to say that Octavian Nothing is more than boilerplate Revolutionary War novel. You could easily hand this novel stripped of any YA tag to an adult and they would never suspect it as being intended for young adults. The sequel is already on my To-Be-Read list , so you can assume I want to find out what happens to Octavian.
Booktalk Hook: Poop. One of the peculiarities of Octavian’s life is that he is required to weigh his feces. And like Stephen King, why should I hesitate to use the gross-out in order to attract readers?