The Ear, the Eye and the Arm
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Author | Nancy Farmer |
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Country | United States |
Language | English |
Genre(s) | Children's, Science fiction novel |
Publisher | Orchard Books |
Released | April 1994 |
Media Type | Print (Hardcover and Paperback) |
Pages | 311 pp (first edition, hardback) |
ISBN | ISBN 0531068293 (first edition, hardback) |
The Ear, the Eye and the Arm is a Newbery Honor book written by Nancy Farmer. It takes place in Zimbabwe in the year 2194.
[edit] Plot Summary
Tendai, Rita and Kuda are children of the General Matsika, Zimbabwe's chief of security who recently purged the country of gangs. Because their father is an important political figure, the three kids grow up in isolation with mainly robots to accompany them. Thirteen year old Tendai feels like the odd one out of his siblings, the cranky Rita, and the four year old Kuda. He is thought soft by his father and other instructors, as Tendai dislikes violence and is very sensitive to people's pain. The only other human in the household, other than their parents, is a blond white man simply known as the "Mellower." The Mellower's nature is to please everyone and it renders him an ineffective guardian, however the parents are unaware of this since their lives are filled with important meetings and state matters. This is especially apparent when the three children decide to go on an exploration of the city by themselves. Aided by the Mellower, the children hipnotize the general into signing their permission forms to go into the city, as they wanted to earn their scout badges. The entire book consists mostly of the children struggling to find a way home and in the process discovering that they aren't as helpless as they originally thought.