To be honest, it took me over a hundred pages to like this book. Once I got past those hundred pages, however, I found the book exciting and a pleasure to read. M.T. Anderson does a great job of creating an engaging story and a character the reader truly cares about. The topic of this story are also unlike any other you would encounter in your typical novel. I’ve read plenty of historical fiction, but never one about the American Revolution told from the perspective of an extremely intelligent Black boy who is used for experimentation.
What I didn’t initially like about this book was the written style. I had no idea it would be written in style of the 18th century so I was caught off guard. The unfamiliar style alienated me a bit from the story and even annoyed me. However, I quickly got used to it and came to appreciate the aim for authenticity. I also felt like it wasn’t really going anywhere. I kind of knew that Octavian and his mother were experiments for Mr. Gitney, but I didn’t see enough conflict to keep me interested. I have to admit I would have stopped reading had this not been required reading.
I’m really glad I did keep reading, though. I learned that Octavian and his mother were Black; that his mother had been brought for the slave trade, and they were both part of an experiment to see if African Americans had the same intellectual capacities as their White counterparts. Then, the conflict increases greatly as Octavian is used to prove that Africans are inferior. Octavian changes so much, and his story captivated me. The rest of the novel was awesome, and I rooted for him all the way, hoping he would be able to escape or at least prove that he was even smarter than those around hims. Bono was also another favorite character. Towards the end of the novel, though, the perspective changes from Octavian’s first person to a variety of letters from a person who comes across Octavian. These were filled with many details I skipped over. I just wanted to know about Octavian. I was glad when the story came back to his perspective in Part III. I also was intrigued by the scribbled out pages after Octavian’s mother’s death. I think these spoke more than words.
Although I thought Octavian Nothing was a stupendous read (and I look forward to reading the rest of the series to find out what happens to him), I don’t think this novel is completely appropriate for a middle school audience. I was reading reviews about the novel online to see what other readers had to say about the book, and one reviewer wrote that it shouldn’t even be a young adult novel. I completely agree. This novel is more appropriate for adults based on the subject matter. For example, there are sexual references throughout, such as when Octavian is pressured to read very adult stories to Bono. Much of the vocabulary is also not suitable for the typical middle schooler. I found some words that were challenging for me. I think that, along with the 18th century style, would turn off most middle schoolers.
However, I think many passages from this book could be used in the classroom. Students could see what people wrote like back then or hear a perspective from a Revolutionary soldier. They could learn about the real experiments that happened on Africans to try to prove or disprove their capacities. I think that the story as a whole would be interesting to students, and maybe passages could be real aloud. The whole novel might be a problem, though, because of its length and occasional inappropriate scenes.
What I didn’t initially like about this book was the written style. I had no idea it would be written in style of the 18th century so I was caught off guard. The unfamiliar style alienated me a bit from the story and even annoyed me. However, I quickly got used to it and came to appreciate the aim for authenticity. I also felt like it wasn’t really going anywhere. I kind of knew that Octavian and his mother were experiments for Mr. Gitney, but I didn’t see enough conflict to keep me interested. I have to admit I would have stopped reading had this not been required reading.
I’m really glad I did keep reading, though. I learned that Octavian and his mother were Black; that his mother had been brought for the slave trade, and they were both part of an experiment to see if African Americans had the same intellectual capacities as their White counterparts. Then, the conflict increases greatly as Octavian is used to prove that Africans are inferior. Octavian changes so much, and his story captivated me. The rest of the novel was awesome, and I rooted for him all the way, hoping he would be able to escape or at least prove that he was even smarter than those around hims. Bono was also another favorite character. Towards the end of the novel, though, the perspective changes from Octavian’s first person to a variety of letters from a person who comes across Octavian. These were filled with many details I skipped over. I just wanted to know about Octavian. I was glad when the story came back to his perspective in Part III. I also was intrigued by the scribbled out pages after Octavian’s mother’s death. I think these spoke more than words.
Although I thought Octavian Nothing was a stupendous read (and I look forward to reading the rest of the series to find out what happens to him), I don’t think this novel is completely appropriate for a middle school audience. I was reading reviews about the novel online to see what other readers had to say about the book, and one reviewer wrote that it shouldn’t even be a young adult novel. I completely agree. This novel is more appropriate for adults based on the subject matter. For example, there are sexual references throughout, such as when Octavian is pressured to read very adult stories to Bono. Much of the vocabulary is also not suitable for the typical middle schooler. I found some words that were challenging for me. I think that, along with the 18th century style, would turn off most middle schoolers.
However, I think many passages from this book could be used in the classroom. Students could see what people wrote like back then or hear a perspective from a Revolutionary soldier. They could learn about the real experiments that happened on Africans to try to prove or disprove their capacities. I think that the story as a whole would be interesting to students, and maybe passages could be real aloud. The whole novel might be a problem, though, because of its length and occasional inappropriate scenes.
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