The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, by M.T Anderson and White Noise, by Don Delillo

I promised myself that I would do a review of every book I read this year, and I'm a bit behind.

The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, by M.T. Anderson was a unique read and brought lively discussion to our book club last month. Set in Boston and thereabouts in the 1760's, the narrator, Octavian, and his mother, Cassiopeia, have been bought as slaves to live in an academy of experimentation. At this academy, The Novanglian College of Lucidity, Octavian and his mother are part of a grand scientific experiment to discover the capabilities of peoples of African descent. As a specimen, Octavian measures his feces, masters the violin, and learns latin. His mother, a supposed queen from Africa, entertains guests of the academy with her beauty. The unspoken question of the experiment is: Is the African able to accomplish what the white man can accomplish with comparable training? The world the characters inhabit feels surreal, yet it is based on schools of thought that Jefferson and Hume themselves adopted. As Octavian becomes more and more educated and capable, his freedoms become stripped away.  The results of the experimentation are used against him to limit his learning. Everyone at our book club was eager to read the sequel to find out what happens to Octavian after an attempted escape. Check out the NY Times Book Review here. I would definitely recommend reading this book. 

                                               

This is now a modern classic, White Noise by Don Delillo (Mr. Post-modern himself). Set in the 1980's a American family experiences a toxic event that forces them to flee town. Everything in this book screams 1980's: pill addiction, references to Diet Coke, broken families with multiple marriages, and the novelty of the microwave. It does give you a glimpse of the decade, but to me it felt blah. I read it because it is supposed to be good, and I thought it was just okay. You don't love the characters, probably because you get a sense that the characters only care about themselves and the fear they're wrapped up in. It's quintessentially post-modern-- not my cup of tea.