Bibliographic Information:
Anderson, M. T. (2006). The astonishing life of Octavian Nothing, traitor to the nation. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Candlewick Press.
Readability Level: 8.3
Audience Level: Grade 7-12
Suggested Delivery: read aloud or independent read
Summary: "In this fascinating and eye-opening Revolution-era novel, Octavian, a black youth raised in a Boston household of radical philosophers, is given an excellent classical education. He and his mother, an African princess, are kept isolated on the estate, and only as he grows older does he realize that while he is well dressed and well fed, he is indeed a captive being used by his guardians as part of an experiment to determine the intellectual acuity of Africans. As the fortunes of the Novanglian College of Lucidity change, so do the nature and conduct of their experiments. [...] Readers will have to wait for the second volume to find out the protagonist's fate. The novel is written in 18th-century language from Octavian's point of view and in letters written by a soldier who befriends him. Despite the challenging style, this powerful novel will resonate with contemporary readers. The issues of slavery and human rights, racism, free will, the causes of war, and one person's struggle to define himself are just as relevant today. Anderson's use of factual information to convey the time and place is powerfully done." –Sharon Rawlins, NJ Library for the Blind and Handicapped, Trenton
Anderson, M. T. (2006). The astonishing life of Octavian Nothing, traitor to the nation. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Candlewick Press.
Readability Level: 8.3
Audience Level: Grade 7-12
Suggested Delivery: read aloud or independent read
Summary: "In this fascinating and eye-opening Revolution-era novel, Octavian, a black youth raised in a Boston household of radical philosophers, is given an excellent classical education. He and his mother, an African princess, are kept isolated on the estate, and only as he grows older does he realize that while he is well dressed and well fed, he is indeed a captive being used by his guardians as part of an experiment to determine the intellectual acuity of Africans. As the fortunes of the Novanglian College of Lucidity change, so do the nature and conduct of their experiments. [...] Readers will have to wait for the second volume to find out the protagonist's fate. The novel is written in 18th-century language from Octavian's point of view and in letters written by a soldier who befriends him. Despite the challenging style, this powerful novel will resonate with contemporary readers. The issues of slavery and human rights, racism, free will, the causes of war, and one person's struggle to define himself are just as relevant today. Anderson's use of factual information to convey the time and place is powerfully done." –Sharon Rawlins, NJ Library for the Blind and Handicapped, Trenton
Curriculum Connections:
Taken from Novel Ties
Taken from Novel Ties
- Imagine that you are a time traveler who has landed back in eighteenth-century Boston and found yourself in Mr. Gitney's home. Write a newspaper expose about the practices within the College of Lucidity.
- Do some research to learn about life in the colonial city of Boston in the years just before the American Revolution. What was the economic and class structure of the society? What attitudes did the inhabitants have toward slavery? At what point did these attitudes begin to affect the political climate?
- What can you learn about Boston commerce from the Boston Gazette excerpt on page 41? How did you react to this newspaper excerpt?