Book Review - Fiction:The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time (2003)
by Mark Haddon
"13. This will not be a funny book. I cannot tell jokes because I cannot understand them. Here is a joke, as an example. It is one of father's.His face was drawn but the curtains were real.
I know why this is meant to be funny. I asked. It is because drawn has three meanings, and they are (1) drawn with a pencil, (2) exhausted, and (3) pulled across a window, and meaning 1 refers to both the face and the curtains, meaning two refers only to the face, and meaning 3 refers only to the curtains.
If I try to say the joke to myself, making the word mean the three different things at the same time, it is like hearing different pieces of music at the same time, which is uncomfortable and confusing and not nice like white noise. It is like three people tryig to talk to you at the same time about different things.
And that is why there are no jokes in this book." pg. 8
One day, young, 15-yr old Christopher Boone walks home to discover the dead body of Wellington on the front lawn of Mrs. Shears' home. Wellington is Mrs. Shears' dog, and an old friend of Christopher's. He deduces that foul play was involved, and dedicates himself to solving the murder case and finding the killer using his own peculiar investigative methodology.
Christopher is autistic, although the term "autism" does not appear in the story. We are simply told that he is "special," and it is uncertain whether or not the boy himself entirely understands the implications of the various euphemisms he is told, but he is certainly aware that he is not normal. For this he appears unapologetic, as he does not choose to - or is simply incapable of - empathizing with others around him for frustration he tends to cause for others. Understanding the complexity of human emotions and behavior, he readily acknowledges, is not his strength. This is, perhaps, why his attachment to Wellington and to his own pet rat are so strong. Animals do not joke, they do not use metaphor, and - as far as he can discern - they do not lie. And neither does Christopher.
What he does do, though, is solve puzzles. He is an autistic savant, with calender memory and the ability to rapidly solve complex mathematics in his head. It is with this skill set that he - sometimes comically - goes about his detective work. How was Wellington killed? Why would someone want to kill the dog? Why does Mrs. Shears not want him to ask questions? Where is Mr. Shears? Why is his own father so adamant about stopping the investigation? Christopher ventures off on his own to solve these mysteries, but he inevitably comes to a few roadblocks. Everyone he knows does not want him to discover the truth about Wellington's death, yet he cannot speak to strangers. He does not like to be touched. He cannot recognize the complexities of human language, unless they are explained to him, and the emotions of others are indecipherable.
Mark Haddon introduces a number of wonderful characters whose pain and sadness seem to come alive on the pages. The prose was simple and beautifully uncommon, its narrative told from the perspective of Christopher himself, mimicking the sequence of logical progression of an autistic person. It is a heartbreaking story, as Christopher's detective work uncovers a dark past in his family, one that will threaten to tear the bonds of his relationship with his father apart. Of course, Curious Incident is both a tragic and inspirational story about living with autism, but much more than that, it is a story about the love and the sacrifice of parenthood. Even though I did not once, while reading the novel, sit back and see genius staring up at me from its pages, I finished the book incapable of deciding whether I was overwhelmed with happiness or sadness at its conclusion, which I feel is the mark of a good story. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time is not a great work of literature, or even an important one, but I recommend it for anyone that needs a bit of light reading over the summer. B
Past Book Reviews (Fiction):
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay (2000) by Michael Chabon
State of Fear (2004) by Michael Crichton
Interpreter of Maladies (1999) by Jhumpa Lahiri
Confederacy of Dunces (1980) by John Kennedy Toole
