The Scavenger's Tale

by Rachel Anderson

It is 2015, after the Great Conflagration, and London has become a tourist sight for people from all over the world, coming to visit the historic Heritage Centres. These are out of bounds to people like Bedford and his sister who live in an Unapproved Temporary Dwelling and have to scavenge
from skips and bins just to stay alive. Bedford begins to notice something odd about the when they arrive in the city, they are desperately ill, but when they leave they seem to have been miraculously cured. And then the Dysfuncs start disappearing. It is only when a stranger appears,
terribly injured, that Bedford begins to put two and two together . . .

Rachel Anderson is a previous winner of the Guardian Children's Fiction Award.

Genres: Science Fiction

144 pages, Paperback

First published December 31, 1997

Reviews

[Lilla Smee · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was generally disappointed by this novel - I had made an effort to track down a copy (I believe it's out of print) after reading about it in an article on dystopian YA fiction (http://www.deakin.edu.au/dro/eserv/DU...). Elements of the novel were intriguing, but, I felt, not explored deeply enough for me to develop a clear sense of the world in which the novel was set. The development of the main character Bedford was spoiled by a particularly jarring segue between him starting to question the rules and purposes of the community in which he lives, to him becoming a total outcast. One of the elements that I did find particularly fascinating was Anderson's portrayal of children with various disabilities (including Downs Syndrome and cerebral palsy): these 'Dysfuncs' (as they are called in the novel) feature prominently and I found them to be incredibly engaging - almost more so than the main character Bedford.

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I first read this in the year 2000 at school when I was 10, and enjoyed it. Promptly forgot until I don’t know how many years later and, following a decade-long search, finally found it again. I’ve been afraid to read it since finding it in case it spoiled my memory but I had to bite the bullet and do it. It was pretty good! Mostly the whole thing was new to me as I couldn’t recall anything, so that was a nice surprise. The premise was good and most of the book kept me interested. I did feel that the last quarter or so was quite rushed and didn’t really make sense, and the ending was frustratingly open with nothing really resolved but nothing to make you want to read more (if there were more). Overall it was alright. Glad I found it and read it again.

[Hubert RvR · Rating 4 out of 5]

A refreshingly frightening novel portraying a vision of 2015 London that has become the capital of health tourism (tourists, majorly foreigners come to the UK to purchase organs from locals against they will).

A world in which the average man's life is subjectified to the sum of one's body components they "farm" on themselves is completely subordinated to the states' economic and social objectives. An elaborate cast system, largely proceduralized and stripping one's individual role in the society. Very Orwellian in a way, makes the reader question the purpose of life and the "race" we are all taking part in.

Interesting augmentation on the perceived changes we observe between citizen vs. government relationships, written from the 1998 perspective.

[Michael Hill · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed it. An interesting read about a dystopian future where lower caste children are harvested for their organs.

Might be a little less far fetched than I would like.