The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

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It's a hit!

Excellent! As someone who works in the autism community I can't imagine a better first-person portrayal of the autistic world. A brilliant take o... (show more)

Excellent! As someone who works in the autism community I can't imagine a better first-person portrayal of the autistic world. A brilliant take on the extraordinariness of the ordinary. (show less)

 

 

by Annie Haden Mehlhoff

No, it's a flop!

What I liked about this book--short chapters numbered by prime numbers (even though I stopped paying attention to that after 17) and the little vis... (show more)

What I liked about this book--short chapters numbered by prime numbers (even though I stopped paying attention to that after 17) and the little visuals and mathematical diagrams. It did give me a little more insight on what it may be like to deal with autism.

However, this book did not satisfy me on an intellectual or emotional level. I would never compare it to Catcher in the Rye. Never. Why would somebody do that? Because the kid ran away? Huck Finn ran away, too!

I just had a lot of trouble relating to the main character (maybe that was the point though) and the situation with the dead dog, Wellington. I feel bad saying this about the book because sometimes I think when other people hype a book up, by comparing it to Catcher, it just sets a reasonably decent novel up for bieng mediocre because it really doesn't compare. I guess, overall, it just wasn't my style of writing or my kind of story. (show less)

 

 

by Shay Hurlocker

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  A gem of a book. Rarely do I come across a book that is so moving, funny, cheeky, smart and entertaining.

  In this book Haddon tells a story of an autistic boy who unknowingly goes into an adventure when trying to figure out who killed his neighbor's poodle.

  Haddon did a spectacular job in transforming his readers into the 'head' of his main character, often by using images as they are supposedly imagined by the character, and to tell his story from a standpoint of an innocent, intelligent,... (show more)

  A gem of a book. Rarely do I come across a book that is so moving, funny, cheeky, smart and entertaining.

  In this book Haddon tells a story of an autistic boy who unknowingly goes into an adventure when trying to figure out who killed his neighbor's poodle.

  Haddon did a spectacular job in transforming his readers into the 'head' of his main character, often by using images as they are supposedly imagined by the character, and to tell his story from a standpoint of an innocent, intelligent, if somewhat anti-social boy.

  The main strength of this book in my opinion is how it evokes a pair of contradicting feelings; on one hand you are frustrated by the character's inability to understand what people around him are trying to do or communicate to him, while on the other hand you are moved by the simplicity and the good intentions he always has.

  Highly recommended. (show less)

   

   

  by Andi Heryanto on Feb 15, 2009 at 11:10PM

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  Frustratingly delightful.
  A curious look into the lives and thought patterns of those suffering from high-functioning autism and the effect this also has on those around them. From the very outset of this fast paced fiction we are thrown into the world of 15 year old Christopher Boone and the reality inside his mind in which he lives. The author Mark Haddon delivers a writing style that allows the reader to share in the frustration that those around the protagonist of this story must themselv... (show more)

  Frustratingly delightful.
  A curious look into the lives and thought patterns of those suffering from high-functioning autism and the effect this also has on those around them. From the very outset of this fast paced fiction we are thrown into the world of 15 year old Christopher Boone and the reality inside his mind in which he lives. The author Mark Haddon delivers a writing style that allows the reader to share in the frustration that those around the protagonist of this story must themselves be feeling. It is a rare joy to find a novel that takes one through so many emotions, those of sympathy, sadness, irritation and yet hope and elation, all simultaneously.
  Well worth a read. (show less)

   

   

  by John Harris on Jun 15, 2008 at 03:22PM

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