Octavian Nothing

The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing: Traitor to the Nation. Vol I & II written by M. T. Anderson

"He is a boy dressed in silks and white wigs and given the best classical education. Raised by a mysterious group of rational philosophers known only my numbers, the boy and his mother - a princess in exile from a faraway land -- are the only people 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" from jacket

Highly recommend this book for grades 10 and up though life.

Would lend itself to a humanities course examining slavery, the Revolutionary War, and Gothic Literature and ethics.

Vol I: The Pox Party - Winner of the National Book Award, ALA Best Books for Young Adults 2007, Michael L. Printz Award - Honor 2007, Horn Book Award - Fiction and Poetry 2007, and Book Sense Book of the Year - Honor Children's Lit 2007

Vol II: The Kingdom on the Waves - Michael L Printz Honor Book

aloha