Sequel to the National Book Award Winner!
"A novel of the first rank, the kind of monumental work Italo Calvino called ‘encycl... read full description
"A novel of the first rank, the kind of monumental work Italo Calvino called ‘encycl... read full description
reviews
Jun 23, 2008
Emily
rated it: 
Most historical fiction books for young people take as their object to show a Typical Person with a Typical Problem in a particular era; and most historical fiction for young people reflects a sort of bland consensus view of history, something that is acceptable to teach in schools.
Octavian Nothing is not most historical fiction.
Picking up where the first book left off, Octavian -- a slave raised in luxury with a first-rate education as part of an experiment -- enlists w More...
Octavian Nothing is not most historical fiction.
Picking up where the first book left off, Octavian -- a slave raised in luxury with a first-rate education as part of an experiment -- enlists w More...
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Dec 02, 2008
Mary-Liz
rated it: 
I liked the first book very much. The story, the characters, the idea--everything about it-- are unique. But the prose, so welcome and so unusual in the first volume, wore me down within the first 50 pages of Vol. 2. This was an absolute struggle to get through. I am glad it's over.
Jun 23, 2008
KT
rated it:
I have been eagerly awaiting the second volume of Octavian Nothing, and am pleased to report that it is even better than the first volume, something I would not have thought possible.
It takes up right where it left off, with Octavian and Dr. Trefusis making their escape to Boston, where Octavian finds employment as a violinist with an orchestra. They live happily for a short time until Boston was threatened by the Rebel troops, and the two escaped once again, this time south to Nor More...
It takes up right where it left off, with Octavian and Dr. Trefusis making their escape to Boston, where Octavian finds employment as a violinist with an orchestra. They live happily for a short time until Boston was threatened by the Rebel troops, and the two escaped once again, this time south to Nor More...
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Nov 01, 2008
Jess
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The action of Volume I: The Pox Party is summed up neatly in a broadside, allowing the plot of Volume II to stand on its own. The emotional content of this book, though, is probably better understood in light of the first book, but there's enough going on here to completely occupy the reader.
Octavian, as a character, is a fascinating outsider in the world he occupies. He has the education of a well-to-do white man, he was raised as an object of scientific inquiry, but he also witne More...
Octavian, as a character, is a fascinating outsider in the world he occupies. He has the education of a well-to-do white man, he was raised as an object of scientific inquiry, but he also witne More...
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Mar 08, 2009
Laura
rated it:
The conclusion of Octavian's tale is every bit as satisfying as the beginning -- it's like a stew, full of strong, hearty language and meaty chunks of characterization and... I'm going to drop this metaphor, for obvious reasons.
Anyway, there was some really great stuff about The Kingdom on the Waves -- I really enjoyed the tales of how some of the slaves ended up in the Ethiopian Regiment (and Octavian's chronicling thereof), and how Bono's levity sparkles throughout what is otherwise an e More...
Anyway, there was some really great stuff about The Kingdom on the Waves -- I really enjoyed the tales of how some of the slaves ended up in the Ethiopian Regiment (and Octavian's chronicling thereof), and how Bono's levity sparkles throughout what is otherwise an e More...
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Jul 22, 2008
Ellen
rated it: 
I wanted to love this one as much as vol. 1, and almost did. But by the end of the book I almost felt as though the author was going to pounce into my room and hit me over the head with the book screaming "Don't you get it? Don't you get it?"
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Dec 17, 2008
Bobby
rated it: 
I give this one 5 stars for its ambition, authenticity and for its ability to take the reader back to the Revolutionary War. But as an enjoyable read, only 3.
I loved the first one and didn't really have a problem getting through it despite its language, but this one almost became a burden. I read the first one over a weekend. This one took me two months.
I think my problem was that the story felt more standard than the first book, which was such a unique reading experie More...
I loved the first one and didn't really have a problem getting through it despite its language, but this one almost became a burden. I read the first one over a weekend. This one took me two months.
I think my problem was that the story felt more standard than the first book, which was such a unique reading experie More...
Dec 13, 2008
Karlan
rated it:
I am not sure that I would have read all of book 2 had I not wondered what happened to the slaves who fought for the British. I wish I had looked for a nonfiction book to relieve my curiosity after Vol. 1. Book 2 is interesting in parts, but I doubt that it is a successful work of fiction because of the repetition. Perhaps the flowery language did not appeal to me.
Dec 04, 2008
Lars
rated it:
Anderson is an astounding writer, a master of language and character development, so as I indicated in my review of Volume I, his self-proclaimed accolade is well deserved. This is an astonishing work, and Octavian's astonishing life is just one of several in this epic saga that takes place during the American Revolutionary War, the birth of science, and an earlier era of globalization. Categorizing "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing" as a young adult novel doesn't acknowledge
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Mar 16, 2009
Kathy
rated it:
I savored this book, reveling in the language. (I confess I read it with my ipod touch handy to look up words I didn't know - just as I did with dictionaries and The New Yorker as a child, and I learned a great deal about machines of warfare.)
This second part of Octavian Nothing's journey from slave to freed man takes him to Virginia Governor Dunmore's failed campaign against the rebels where an army of African-Americans, promised freedom, are holed up in ships and sent out in fruitl More...
This second part of Octavian Nothing's journey from slave to freed man takes him to Virginia Governor Dunmore's failed campaign against the rebels where an army of African-Americans, promised freedom, are holed up in ships and sent out in fruitl More...
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Feb 23, 2009
Julia
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The first volume of Octavian Nothing (The Pox Party) deals with Octavian's childhood living as a slave in a house of scientists immediately before the Revolutionary War. He is studied from his infancy and experiences both the luxury and humiliation, and eventually escapes his masters.
This second volume is a worthy successor to the amazing first book. It is, however, less hopeful and more inspiring. Octavian begins the novel having made it to Boston with his mentor Dr. Tresifus. T More...
This second volume is a worthy successor to the amazing first book. It is, however, less hopeful and more inspiring. Octavian begins the novel having made it to Boston with his mentor Dr. Tresifus. T More...
Feb 01, 2009
Amanda Lueck
rated it:
I have waited to read the conclusion for awhile -- thanks be to bronchitis for giving me the time.
I didn't find the second one to be quite as mesmerizing and fascinating as the first, but it was still solid, interesting, and harrowing. Octavian finally finds himself surrounded by others who are like him -- African -- and yet he is so unlike them that it is painful. Anderson pulls no punches in proclaiming Octavian to be lost between the Anglo world in which he was raised, before he More...
I didn't find the second one to be quite as mesmerizing and fascinating as the first, but it was still solid, interesting, and harrowing. Octavian finally finds himself surrounded by others who are like him -- African -- and yet he is so unlike them that it is painful. Anderson pulls no punches in proclaiming Octavian to be lost between the Anglo world in which he was raised, before he More...
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Jan 30, 2012
Phil
rated it:
The second and final volume of the horrific, touching, funny, and well told tale of Octavian Nothing. Octavian, who was bought as a slave (with his mother) and educated as an experiment in the first novel, is now on the lam more or less. As the first book dealt with some heavy issues, so does this one. This time around it's the idea of "freedom" during one of the most prominent events that addressed the idea on a historic scale : the American revolution. Ah, how the hypocrisy oozes
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Nov 20, 2011
Richard
rated it:
Rating: 3.5* of five
Well, second books often don't rise to the level of the first in inventiveness and freshness. This one is typical of the syndrome.
Beginning where the extraordinary and original The Pox Party left off, The Kingdom on the Waves makes the adventures of Octavian Nothing complete. His best efforts are thwarted, his noblest desires unfulfilled, his quest for justice failed. All very true to history, but all very easy to predict. It's not that this is a bad book; More...
Well, second books often don't rise to the level of the first in inventiveness and freshness. This one is typical of the syndrome.
Beginning where the extraordinary and original The Pox Party left off, The Kingdom on the Waves makes the adventures of Octavian Nothing complete. His best efforts are thwarted, his noblest desires unfulfilled, his quest for justice failed. All very true to history, but all very easy to predict. It's not that this is a bad book; More...
Nov 06, 2011
Ryan
rated it:
A fine sequel to the excellent first part of the trilogy. In this book, the teenage Octavian flees into the rebel-besieged Boston, hoping to find safety and champions of liberty for slaves among the British forces. As before, Anderson writes eloquently and with delicious detail, drawing us into 18th century America and its stew of intellectuals, gentry, commoners, soldiers, slaves, and runaway slaves, framed from the fish-out-of-water perspective of a highly educated black boy from a uniquely sh
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May 09, 2011
Maggie
rated it:
Put it this way - no amount of praise, ever, in a million years, could come close to doing this book justice. I mean, holy crap. It might not be a page-turner, per se, and I certainly had to keep my dictionary handy - I mean, how often do you find dialogue like "I can see that if we allow the slightest divagation on the subject of your charms, we shall never have time to hear the tale of your escape" in YA lit? - but wow, was it worth it.
I might have enjoyed this book even m More...
I might have enjoyed this book even m More...
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Apr 16, 2011
Bill
rated it:
Good book. Easy to keep on reading through the night, yet it is also formatted nicely so it is easy to stop after a short chapter. Speaking of formatting, the book has some rough cut paper pages, a historical type font (for the most part), parts of the text that have been scratched out/unreadable, and other font tricks to help further the illusion of being written from a historical manuscript. Instead of being cheesy I thought it worked well. The characters and story are well fleshed out and see
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Feb 05, 2011
Paul
rated it:
This is the second and final volume of one of the most, to borrow a word from the book's own title, astonishing stories of the American Revolution I have ever read. Octavian Nothing, child of a teen-aged slave mother, is coddled and classically educated as part of a long-term experiment by members of the Novanglian College of Lucidity; as a teenager himself his world comes crashing down and he discovers he is merely a negro slave himself. Living on the run through pestilence, social chaos, an
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Jan 24, 2011
Heather
rated it:
This second volume does not fit in the same category as the first of the Octavian Nothing story. The gripping philosophical questions that M. T. Anderson raised in "The Pox Party" are not only left in limbo, but are also replaced by scenarios and rantings all too prevalent in most modern historical fiction. I understand that the past was not a rosy-hued age of perfection, but realism does not require bitter, acidic despondency either.
Warning: If the first volume was ques More...
Warning: If the first volume was ques More...
Jan 19, 2011
Jamez
rated it:
When I here the term 'historical fiction' certain characteristics naturally come to mind. I tend to think of fairly dry little narratives in journal form, consisting largely of complaints about the trials and suffering of daily life in the time period under advisement. Some one close to the main character will almost certainly die of smallpox, influenza, yellow fever, or whatever plague was in fashion at the time. Life will suck for a while but things will eventually start looking up in a stoic
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Nov 30, 2010
Rachel
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
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Jun 21, 2009
Ningerbil
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May 06, 2009
Jennifer
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Reviewed by Cana Rensberger for TeensReadToo.com
For those of you who immersed yourself in the world of THE POX PARTY, you must read M. T. Anderson's second volume, THE KINGDOM ON THE WAVES. I would highly recommend you read the two volumes in order.
In volume two, Octavian escapes the cruelty of Mr. Gitney and, with his former tutor, Dr. Trefusis, on his back, flees across the mud-flats to Boston. Once there, they are able to find lodging, trading only upon the name and re More...
For those of you who immersed yourself in the world of THE POX PARTY, you must read M. T. Anderson's second volume, THE KINGDOM ON THE WAVES. I would highly recommend you read the two volumes in order.
In volume two, Octavian escapes the cruelty of Mr. Gitney and, with his former tutor, Dr. Trefusis, on his back, flees across the mud-flats to Boston. Once there, they are able to find lodging, trading only upon the name and re More...
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Apr 15, 2009
Rachael
rated it:
The Kingdom on the Waves and its prequel The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Vol. 1 The Pox Party, are solid young adult historical reads. You have to read both books and it is probably better to think of them as one long book than as a book and a sequel. The second is the better of the two in terms of believability and interest of the plot, but the first is necessary setup. In trying to make the novels feel like a late-eighteenth-century memoir, the author occas
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Jan 25, 2009
Julia
rated it:
1/25/09 pub 2008 While I truly enjoyed this novel and the one that precedes it, it doesn’t surprise me that it took me eight days to read; it is *not* fun or light reading. Leaving Boston with one of the philosophers, Dr. Trefusis, Octavian joins Governor Dunmore’s unit of Royal Ethiopian Regiment whose uniforms read “Liberty to Slaves” and are promised freedom for their (successful) service. We *know* they are not going to be successful, so it adds another level of difficulty to the book.
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Jun 14, 2010
kyliemm
rated it:
I LOVED THIS BOOK. IT WAS REALLY GREAT AND EVERYONE SHOULD READ IT.
I read this book without reading the first one (this was the only one in the series I could find at the library...), and I would recommend it very highly to ANYONE. The book is about a boy named Octavian who has just escaped from the college where he was raised by a committee of white scientists who were basically experimenting on him to see if a black child, raised in the right environment, could be as intelligent More...
I read this book without reading the first one (this was the only one in the series I could find at the library...), and I would recommend it very highly to ANYONE. The book is about a boy named Octavian who has just escaped from the college where he was raised by a committee of white scientists who were basically experimenting on him to see if a black child, raised in the right environment, could be as intelligent More...
May 09, 2009
Melody
rated it:
When I read the first volume of the Octavian Nothing series, I knew I'd read something extraordinary, but I didn't know what to do with it, and so I only mildly enjoyed it (as you'll notice from my rating). However, in the intervening years, Octavian's story, and M.T. Anderson's masterful use of narrative, language, and historical theory, got under my skin, and it became the contemporary book I used as a touchstone for excellence in fiction writing (not just Juvenile fiction writing) perhaps mo
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May 27, 2009
JoLee
rated it:
By the end of The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves M.T. Anderson had won me over. My reaction to Volume I was decidedly lukewarm, and I began the second volume feeling like this was a book a should read rather than one I felt driven to read.
Volume II begin with Octavian and his tutor Dr. Trefusis fleeing to British-held Boston. From there they make their way to Virginia where Octavian joins up with Lord Dunmore's Eth More...
Volume II begin with Octavian and his tutor Dr. Trefusis fleeing to British-held Boston. From there they make their way to Virginia where Octavian joins up with Lord Dunmore's Eth More...
May 02, 2010
John
rated it:
I'm going to go ahead and give this one five stars, and retroactively I should probably give the first one five stars too. I have so much admiration for this author. He is not only writing a fake 18th century confessional autobiographical novel, but he is doing it in appropriate dialect, crazy vocabulary and archaic construction be damned. He even includes authentic letters of the period, doctored slightly for flow and length. And he keeps to the history! Some of the events are slightly skewed o
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Aug 07, 2011
An epic tale masterfully executed. In my opinion, it is even stronger than the first, especially if one has a strong interest in history. The attention to detail is impressive and the novel's emotional pulse carries us along with Octavian as he grows from naive student to a man of intelligence and character. Anderson writes without fear for the minority, not writing for the cash back, but because he had a story worthy of being told and worthy of marching through time as a classic. I can currentl
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