Friday, February 8, 2008

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon


Quick Review since I've read it before.


Overview: This story is written from the perspective of a 15-year-old boy with autism. The author is neither austistic nor an expert, but writes a good story. The story is a murder mystery of a dog, and has lots of sad twists and turns. It is a sad story, but has a nice ending.

Warning: Several F-words. Not gratuitous, but I like to give you a heads up. The characters are British after all.

What I like: Of course I always like a happy ending. I like the main character. Its hard not too. Your heart breaks for him as he struggles through life. I felt like cheering when he did brave things! As the details of the story unfold, I have to admire the author for the interesting idea and perspective.

What I don't like: If you internalize too much, this can really be a downer of a book. Does that make sense? There were a few inconsistencies that seemed a little forced, but I'm not an autism expert either.

Recommendation: I'd recommend this to everyone. It's a different book, and it will give you some insight you might not already have. It's a quick read (especially the second time around!) Just be forwarned about the language.

2 comments:

Amy said...

I enjoyed your comments last night at book club. I totally agree with you; if you internalize stories, this book is quite difficult to read, but worth reading.

Emmie-Lew said...

This is one of my all-time favorites! I have a hard time recommending it b/c of the "F" word. BLAH. I really enjoyed the odd-ness of it all. It's been 3-4 years since I read it, but I still think about it. Dad was teaching Statistics at LDS Business College when I read this. I showed him the "Let's Make a Deal" problem in the book- and he LOVED it. He used it in his classes! :) Lewis didn't believe the answer in the book and had to prove it himself, long-hand--(whatever that means- I'm so NOT statistically minded like my Dad!) Anyway- I really liked the book, too!