- Paperback: 288 pages
- Publisher: Red Fox; Childrens ed edition (1 April 2004)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0099456761
- ISBN-13: 978-0099456766
- Product Dimensions: 19.2 x 12.8 x 3 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (744 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 114,912 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time
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Product Description
From Amazon.co.uk
The title The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time (or the curious incident of the dog in the night-time as it appears within the book) is an appropriate one for Mark Haddon's ingenious novel both because of its reference to that most obsessive and fact-obsessed of detectives, Sherlock Holmes, and because its lower-case letters indicate something important about its narrator.
Christopher is an intelligent youth who lives in the functional hinterland of autism--every day is an investigation for him because of all the aspects of human life that he does not quite get. When the dog next door is killed with a garden fork, Christopher becomes quietly persistent in his desire to find out what has happened and tugs away at the world around him until a lot of secrets unravel messily.
Haddon makes an intelligent stab at how it feels to, for example, not know how to read the faces of the people around you, to be perpetually spooked by certain colours and certain levels of noise, to hate being touched to the point of violent reaction. Life is difficult for the difficult and prickly Christopher in ways that he only partly understands; this avoids most of the obvious pitfalls of novels about disability because it demands that we respect--perhaps admire--him rather than pity him. --Roz Kaveney --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.
Review
"The book gave me that rare, greedy feeling of: this is so good I want to read it all at once but I mustn't or it will be over too soon. Haddon pulls off something extraordinary . . ." -- "The Observer"
"Always surprising and often hilarious." -- "The Globe and Mail"
"One of the most affecting things I've read in years . . . it's brilliant." -- "The Guardian"
"Mark Haddon's new novel comes with glowing endorsements from Ian McEwan and Oliver Sacks . . . For once, the pundits speak the truth." -- "The Economist"
"A stark, funny and original first novel . . . [with] one of the strangest and most convincing characters in recent fiction." -- "The New York Times Book Review"
"A brilliant autism novel has been overdue -- and this is it! The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. Mark Haddon shows great insight into the autistic mind, and he brings his young narrator protagonist quite wonderfully to life. I found it very moving, very plausible -- and "very" funny." -- Oliver Sacks, author of Uncle Tungsten
"I have never read anything quite like Mark Haddon's funny and agonizingly honest book, or encountered a narrator more vivid and memorable. I advise you to buy two copies; you won't want to lend yours out." -- Arthur Golden, author of Memoirs of a Geisha
"The Curious Incident brims with imagination, empathy, and vision -- plus it's a lot of fun to read." -- Myla Goldberg, author of Bee Season
"Mark Haddon's portrayal of an emotionally disassociated mind is a superb achievement. He is a wise and bleakly funny writer with rare gifts of empathy." -- Ian McEwan, author of Atonement
"Always surprising and often hilarious." -- "The Globe and Mail"
"One of the most affecting things I've read in years . . . it's brilliant." -- "The Guardian"
"Mark Haddon's new novel comes with glowing endorsements from Ian McEwan and Oliver Sacks . . . For once, the pundits speak the truth." -- "The Economist"
"A stark, funny and original first novel . . . [with] one of the strangest and most convincing characters in recent fiction." -- "The New York Times Book Review"
"A brilliant autism novel has been overdue -- and this is it! The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. Mark Haddon shows great insight into the autistic mind, and he brings his young narrator protagonist quite wonderfully to life. I found it very moving, very plausible -- and "very" funny." -- Oliver Sacks, author of Uncle Tungsten
"I have never read anything quite like Mark Haddon's funny and agonizingly honest book, or encountered a narrator more vivid and memorable. I advise you to buy two copies; you won't want to lend yours out." -- Arthur Golden, author of Memoirs of a Geisha
"The Curious Incident brims with imagination, empathy, and vision -- plus it's a lot of fun to read." -- Myla Goldberg, author of Bee Season
"Mark Haddon's portrayal of an emotionally disassociated mind is a superb achievement. He is a wise and bleakly funny writer with rare gifts of empathy." -- Ian McEwan, author of Atonement
"From the Trade Paperback edition."
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
218 of 223 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Many of the people who have reviewed this book have first hand experience of children with behavioural problems, or links to Aspergers and / or Autism. They have (almost entirely) commented on how this book reflects in some way their experiences or that of friends or relatives. They have almost all enjoyed the book, and having read these reviews you may feel that, if you have no such experience, the book may not appeal to you.
Well, I personally have no experience in these areas, and I can honestly say that this has gone straight into my all time top 5 reads!
The story is wonderfully crafted, and not a page goes by when you do not learn something new about Christopher, the central character who has, I understand, though it is not stated in the book, Aspergers Syndrome (the book is actually written entirely from Christophers perspective).
This is one of those rare books that makes you want to discuss (not just talk about) the story. My wife and I both read it over the same weekend, and we kept finding ourselves going back to it to talk through some of the difficulties that Christopher faced, and how it must be to have to deal with them, either as the child or as a parent. This story really gives an insight into a mind which, in some ways, is far more developed than the mind of an "ordinary" person. It also gives you a feel for what it must be like to need complete structure and order to a life which can never absolutely have both. The lack of what you and I would call "emotion" was in itself deeply moving, and several times I found myself asking how I would cope if one of my two children had the same difficulties.
This is a remarkable book. If only everyone could read it, society would become a much more understanding and accepting place for those who suffer from the effects of conditions such as Aspergers, ADHD and Autism.
83 of 86 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is a murder mystery novel like no other. The detective, and narrator, is Christopher Boone. He is fifteen and has Asperger’s, a form of Autism. He knows a very great deal about maths and very little about human beings. He loves lists, patterns and the truth and owns a pet rat called Toby. He hates the colours yellow and brown and hates being touched. He knows it’s going to be a good day if he passes red cars on his way to school on the bus. He has never gone further than the end of the road on his own, but when he finds a neighbour’s dog murdered he sets out on a terrifying journey, which will turn his whole world upside down.
Haddon has created a wonderfully brilliant character. His depiction of Christopher’s world is deeply moving, very funny and utterly convincing. He shows a unique insight into the autistic mind of the unlikely teenage detective who stumbles on everyday normalities as obstacles which further leads him to unearthing secrets that shock and startle him into running away.
What drives Haddon’s tale, however, is his empathy for his protagonist: it might have been easy to make Christopher an amusing suburban hybrid of Forest Gump and Adrian Mole, but the author digs deeper, mining a deeper emotional truth with a rigorous sense of purpose, one expressly devoid of cheap homily. He also knows a damn good page-turner: the emotional beats here are resonant and well deserved, the key plot revelations affecting, and the payoff deeply satisfying.
Although a work of fiction, it is both an educational and vividly honest adaptation of the trails and hurdles that people like Christopher undergo on a daily basis and that most of us are unaware of. A lesson can surely be learned from reading this boy’s curiously different story.
Incidentally, if you are to read only one book in the next 12 months, let it be this one. It more than deserves the recent accolade of 'Top Dog' in both the Guardian and Whitbread Awards for best book. This gem is a must and is star quality in new fiction writing regardless of age and background.
Haddon has created a wonderfully brilliant character. His depiction of Christopher’s world is deeply moving, very funny and utterly convincing. He shows a unique insight into the autistic mind of the unlikely teenage detective who stumbles on everyday normalities as obstacles which further leads him to unearthing secrets that shock and startle him into running away.
What drives Haddon’s tale, however, is his empathy for his protagonist: it might have been easy to make Christopher an amusing suburban hybrid of Forest Gump and Adrian Mole, but the author digs deeper, mining a deeper emotional truth with a rigorous sense of purpose, one expressly devoid of cheap homily. He also knows a damn good page-turner: the emotional beats here are resonant and well deserved, the key plot revelations affecting, and the payoff deeply satisfying.
Although a work of fiction, it is both an educational and vividly honest adaptation of the trails and hurdles that people like Christopher undergo on a daily basis and that most of us are unaware of. A lesson can surely be learned from reading this boy’s curiously different story.
Incidentally, if you are to read only one book in the next 12 months, let it be this one. It more than deserves the recent accolade of 'Top Dog' in both the Guardian and Whitbread Awards for best book. This gem is a must and is star quality in new fiction writing regardless of age and background.
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I first read this book at the age of ten. My younger brother was 5, and had just started primary school; the same school as the one I was at.
I loved this book and thought it was funny, and deeply moving.
My brother (lets call him Joe Bloggs!) aka JB started to have problems at school. He wasn't paying attention, didn't seem to be learning anything.
He was diagnosed with Speech and Languege Problems.
This book has brought my whole family closer to the truth and we all suspect he has autism.
This book has a very realistic take on autism and has helped me understand my brother.
I loved this book and thought it was funny, and deeply moving.
My brother (lets call him Joe Bloggs!) aka JB started to have problems at school. He wasn't paying attention, didn't seem to be learning anything.
He was diagnosed with Speech and Languege Problems.
This book has brought my whole family closer to the truth and we all suspect he has autism.
This book has a very realistic take on autism and has helped me understand my brother.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Fabulous book
I can highly recommend this book. Most insightful. A must for anyone who has any dealings with autism. It makes you laugh, cry and most importantly - think!
Published 21 hours ago by Shirley
well written book.
I liked this book, although I would not agree with the 5-star reviews as there is a lot of swearing. It is about a 15 boy who has asperges.
Published 9 days ago by M. Wilkinson
The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night Time
This Audio CD of this well known book arrived promptly and is as described - an audio version of the book on CD's!.
Published 10 days ago by Jeanette A. Coyle
cliched and superficial
This promotes seeing all autistic children as the little professor with the big social issues. What it fails miserably to do is to recognise the neurodiversity of autistic... Read more
Published 25 days ago by barton
The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time
This is a great book which demonstrates the actions of a child who is in the autistic spectrum. It has given me beter ubderstanding of the condition and how parents have to cope... Read more
Published 26 days ago by aliceann
More than one way to view a crime
The book is a thriller; engrossing from the beginning with humour and sadness. A book for teens and above,it is easy to empathise with all the flawed characters and their... Read more
Published 28 days ago by Andy, E Sussex
Great
If you want a good, easy and amusing read, which enables you to understand what goes on in the head of somebody who is autistic this is the book. I recommend it highly.
Published 1 month ago by C2PO
autism
Had to read this book through in one go, was highly entertained but it wasn't what I was expecting at all. Read more
Published 1 month ago by JanBird&DebMeades
Amazing
If you know some one with Asperger's or have even just heard about it this it a great book that gets you in to the head of some one with Asperger's and helps you understand them a... Read more
Published 1 month ago by J. Colman
Fantastic Read
Thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. It opens up the world for anyone dealing with autism. Great plot and easy read for any age. Loved it!!!
Published 1 month ago by rrori112
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