The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time - Mark Haddon > Reviews

Advantages: Stunningly well-written, genuinely interesting, clever and often amusing, superb lead character, easy to read
Disadvantages: Tails off just slighty towards the end

...to prise myself away from the PlayStation for just long enough to start reading The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time. Unquestionably a strange name for a book; though the story is equally, if not more, unique than its title. Christopher Boone is fifteen years-old, and has Asperger’s, which is a form of autism. He narrates The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time (TCIOTDITN) for its entirety, and begins ‘his book’ ... Read review

Advantages: A very well written look inside an Asperger's child's psyche
Disadvantages: TOO MUCH MATHS!

...to admit was pleasantly surprised. Boring= Title: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time Author: Mark Haddon Publisher: Random House Children's Books ISBN: 0-09-945676-1 Price: £6.99 Plot Christopher John Francis Boone is a fifteen year old boy who can tell you all the countries in the world and their capital cities, a boy who can tell you all the prime numbers up to 7,507. Sounds like a genius, yes? Well, no, because ... Read review

Advantages: It includes a good explanation of the difference between a metaphor and a simile.
Disadvantages: It's set in Swindon.

...called "The Curious Incident of the Dog in The Night-Time" - which is a very long title. PJE told me that it was something Sherlock Holmes said in a story called Silver Blaze† and that the curious thing was that the dog didn't do anything in the night-time, but I don't think that makes sense. My name is Ludo. I do not have Asperger's Syndrome, or anything like that, I am just pretending - like the person who wrote this book. He says his name is ... Read review

Advantages: Oooh, big numbers.
Disadvantages: The dead dog ~ what are you, heartless?!!?

...begins. You will notice the obvious quirk ~ the chapters are numbered using only prime numbers. This is because of the most unusual character of the narrator, Christopher Boone. The cover blurb informs us he has Asperger's Syndrome, but the book never tells us this. The book instead uses brilliant use of confession and personal detail to let us know instead what this means for Christopher. He hates being touched, even by his parents. He hates brown ... Read review

Advantages: An insight into special needs children.
Disadvantages: It does not fully explain differing syndromes.

...a load of books from the library. I love reading and for me it is an escape from the grim details of reality. All the assistants know me well and being aware of my disabilities one asked me if I would like to join the local reading discussion group. My initial reply was going to be "No, thanks" as I don't like meeting strangers but from somewhere deep inside me a little voice said, " Go on, do it". This month's book was "The Curious Incident of the ... Read review

Advantages: Delightful, Heart-warming, Funny, Unputdownable
Disadvantages: None

...it is a hardback book. The book itself is plain black and the dust jacket is brown with feint lines on it which look the same as wrapping paper. On the cover is a picture of a dog with a fork stuck in it. A Garden Fork. The letters of the title are one inch high and are in BLOCK CAPITALS. The book has 272 pages. Now before you all go and rate me UH for describing the ‘packaging’ of a book to you, please read on. “The Curious Incident of the Dog ... Read review

Advantages: A Book Well Worthy of Reading
Disadvantages: Too Darn Short

...a garden fork? This is the question Christopher Boone asks himself as he cradles the still warm body of Wellington the poodle in his arms. Unfortunately before Christopher can ponder this question fully Mrs Shears happens upon him holding the dog and has him arrested as the prime suspect. After a night in the cells and a warning for punching a policeman, Christopher is cleared in any wrong doing relating to Wellingtons death. He decides however to ... Read review

Advantages: too many to list
Disadvantages: you are left wanting more

...by a colleague, who read the whole book in an entire day. The subject matter is very close to our hearts, due to the type of work we both do. I work with children with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties, some of which have ADHD, Asperger’s syndrome (AS) and Autism (ASD), among others. So I come across children like Christopher, the lead character, on a regular basis. The story is set in Swindon, and follows the adventures of Christopher ... Read review

Advantages: Compelling reading.
Disadvantages: Some advanced mathematical statements.

...£10.99, (when we bought it) the Whitbread book of the year, published in 2003. The author is Mark Haddon. Published by Jonathon Cape, ISBN: 0224063782. The book comes in a childs and adults version, I think I had the adult version because of a few four letter words in it. There is a cheaper soft back version also now. Mark Haddon has written fifteen books for children altogether. This book continues to dominate the best sellers. The book is a fictional ... Read review

Advantages: Wonderful, great story, insight into Asperger's, brilliant characterisation
Disadvantages: Swearing

...glowing praise and after all, the subject matter was of interest to me. The ‘hero’ of the book is Christopher, a fifteen year old who has Asperger’s Syndrome. As a mother of a twelve year old boy with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and an eight year old daughter with Oppositional Defiance Disorder, I am aware of Asperger’s – actually, my cousin’s son has that himself. These are all in the same spectrum, with common similarities between ... Read review

Advantages: subject
Disadvantages: style

...many, if I put all the titles of reviews that have impressed me on my must-read list and actually read the books, I´d have to hand in my resignation and read day and night. Besides, I always find something to read from other sources of information, there is no shortage of reading matter in this household. Why then did I order The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time after reading reviews on the net? I think it was the oddity of the main ... Read review

Advantages: Fantastic read with great main character
Disadvantages: Diagrams, for some people

...assignment! Although I do enjoy the books I have to read for my course, reading for pleasure is such a totally different experience. I don’t generally tend to stick to genres when reading; I tend to read through recommendations. I don’t get to read many books for pleasure, so when I finally lay my hands on one I want it to be a good one! I had many good reviews about this book and although I was at first a little put off by the title I was also ... Read review