The Pox Party

“Octavian Nothing” is the second book by M.T.Andersdon that I have read, the first of which being “Feed”. In both of his books, Anderson attempts to explain the effects of our actions on the will of others, one example being how technology can gradually rid one of their humanity in “Feed”. With this book, however, Anderson seeks to provide a glimpse of what life was like for those slaves during the Revolutionary War through the life of Octavian. I may say that he succeeds at this exceptionally, if not, without some small problems.

This story tells of Octavian, an African American boy who studies at the fictional College of Lucidity. He is made to do various philosophical things, such as weight how much he eats and his waste, and study Latin and Greek. He way traverse the College at his pleasure except for a door which he may not enter under any circumstances. In the beginning of the novel, he and the reader discover that in this room contains notes and filings on his progress through life and how he progresses in his studies. This is to see if an African American can learn a European education as well as any white person could. While, for the time period, this experiment may seem noble, one may feel that that is not all to this story, and indeed, it is revealed that Octavian is part of a bigger plot and philosophy which will come to shatter his belief in man.

Upon beginning to read this book, I must say that the most striking thing is the writing style. Itis written with the wording of those persons who lived in that time. If you have read Thomas Paine, then this writing will not seem unfamiliar to you. This writing I did not mind, but I can honestly see this as being a major sore point for many readers, and may account for its lack of success, despite its awards. For myself, however, this assisted in helping me to dive into the world and get lost in the characters.

Another problem does appear almost immediately upon reading the book: This book does not mention that the area or time period is set around the American Revolution, and that this character is African American. Normally, I would not call attention to this, but, sadly, this is a factor I cannot ignore. When the focus of the book is on how African American slaves were treated at the start of the American Revolution, it should be made clear on the front synopsis that this is the case, but that is not true here. Initially, I believed that this was about a boy set in some fictional land, and that he and his mother were political prisoners of the Pox Party and...yeah, that doesn't happen at all. Still, I do not think this is precisely the fault of the author, just the publishing/marketing team.

Regardless, this author did a very good job researching the time period. He managed to hit all of the right points in terms of historical research, and executed them accordingly. I always felt that the American Revolution was something that supplemented this story only until it needed to come into the front of the plot line. When the Revolution did take place, I did like how the idea of the slaves not being counted as free people was something that was exposed here, something that young people may not have considered when thinking of America.

Needless to say the writing and the time taken to delve into the subject matter does take a little time to set up, and the middle of the plot does drag, but I urge my fellow readers to stick with it. It comes together beautifully, and it delves into these provocative questions in a manner that is very well done. I agree with other reviewers to say that this demands re-reading. I can only hope that this book is greater valued among st readers, and that the second book, is as good, if not better, than this one.