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Paddyfield.com
Paddyfield.com
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time
hardcover $26.00
Doubleday Books
Paddyfield.com
Powells.com (USA)
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More reviews by Paul McGuire
Readers may purchase reviewed books from Paddyfield.com, Asia's online bookseller.North American readers may prefer to buy US editions from Powells.com.
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The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Marc Haddon
This innovative novel made it to the long list for this year's Man Booker Prize: thoughtful, hugely entertaining and full of rich irony and delicious contradictions.
When fifteen-year-old Christopher finds his neighbour's dog dead on the lawn he sets in motion a series of events that will ultimately decide his future as well as those around him. Christopher has Asperger's syndrome, a form of autism and his decision to investigate the dog's death unearths deep, dark secrets that illuminate the mysteries and intricacies of his family life.
Like his fellow sufferers, Christopher has little time for people: they just don't think logically. But as he travels his self-made road he is forced to confront the reality that life does not follow a cold, well-ordered pattern, his alters consciousness imagines.
He does not like noise or people touching him and this makes his journey even more traumatic and remarkable. His quest is helped by his typically excellent memory and ability to solve problems. Yet his own problems go well beyond the limits of everyday life and his effect on those he encounters is seminal.
MARC HADDON specialises in innovative storylines in his work as an author, screenwriter and illustrator allied to his remarkable ability to demonstrate what it is to be autistic without sentimentality or exaggeration allied to a creative use of puzzles, facts and photographs in the text mark him out as a real talent drawing on a range of abilities. An excellent touch is that Christopher hates novels (too little logic), apart from Hound of the Baskervilles, but he is writing one about his investigations: some might call it faction. The same people might call Haddon's intriguing book the same.
Paul McGuire
10/10/2003
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Paul McGuire is a freelance author, writer and reviewer. He is also Deputy Principal of Sha Tin Junior School. |
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