Review: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
by Mark Haddon
As far as auspicious firsts go, this would have made a great first review for my book blog. I had some expectations for this book, after reading a few positive write-ups here and there. I first saw it at the Times Warehouse Sale 2004 (not the recent one) but it wasn’t really any cheaper than usual, seeing that it was just released.
I finally bought it at my first visit to Borders, along with Absolute Friends by John le Carre and Rule of Four by Ian Caldwell and Dustin Thomason.
However, after finishing the book in 4 short sittings (it’s only about 230 pages) I was less than impressed. My one and only gripe (and a major one at that) was that Haddon’s effort is far too similar to Sue Townsend’s Adrian Mole Diary series. Granted, I’m slightly biased (Townsend is one of my favourite authors) but I can hardly accept that Haddon wrote this book without any influence from any of the Adrian Mole series.
The similarities are all too obvious – Adrian Mole is a self-absorbed teenager who thinks himself as a literary genius, clueless of most things that take place around him. But in Haddon’s book, the premise is more bittersweet: the protagonist is an autistic mathematical genius (the short bio on the author notes that he works with autistic children). Perhaps this gives an air of legitimacy to the novel, but the similarities don’t with only the premise, parts of the storyline are also mirror-like: parents separate and pair off with neighbours, protagonist uses mathematical problems to calm himself down (Adrian Mole uses literature), etc.
Having said that, The Curious Incident a decent book. Its writing is simple and straightforward, suitable for young readers or those who want to start reading seriously. Independently, it deals honestly with autism in children. In fact while reading it, I kept referring back mentally to the movie Mercury Rising starring Bruce Willis and Alec Baldwin, which also dealt on the similar issue, albeit in a more Hollywood-style way.
If you liked this book, I recommend:
Vernon God Little by DBC Pierre
The Adrian Mole series by Sue Townsend
by Mark Haddon
As far as auspicious firsts go, this would have made a great first review for my book blog. I had some expectations for this book, after reading a few positive write-ups here and there. I first saw it at the Times Warehouse Sale 2004 (not the recent one) but it wasn’t really any cheaper than usual, seeing that it was just released.
I finally bought it at my first visit to Borders, along with Absolute Friends by John le Carre and Rule of Four by Ian Caldwell and Dustin Thomason.
However, after finishing the book in 4 short sittings (it’s only about 230 pages) I was less than impressed. My one and only gripe (and a major one at that) was that Haddon’s effort is far too similar to Sue Townsend’s Adrian Mole Diary series. Granted, I’m slightly biased (Townsend is one of my favourite authors) but I can hardly accept that Haddon wrote this book without any influence from any of the Adrian Mole series.
The similarities are all too obvious – Adrian Mole is a self-absorbed teenager who thinks himself as a literary genius, clueless of most things that take place around him. But in Haddon’s book, the premise is more bittersweet: the protagonist is an autistic mathematical genius (the short bio on the author notes that he works with autistic children). Perhaps this gives an air of legitimacy to the novel, but the similarities don’t with only the premise, parts of the storyline are also mirror-like: parents separate and pair off with neighbours, protagonist uses mathematical problems to calm himself down (Adrian Mole uses literature), etc.
Having said that, The Curious Incident a decent book. Its writing is simple and straightforward, suitable for young readers or those who want to start reading seriously. Independently, it deals honestly with autism in children. In fact while reading it, I kept referring back mentally to the movie Mercury Rising starring Bruce Willis and Alec Baldwin, which also dealt on the similar issue, albeit in a more Hollywood-style way.
What I liked about the book was that it did not get too preachy or sentimentalized over the touchy subject nature, and serves to give a fair view of children with autism. On the negative side, i felt the ending was a bit rushed, but perhaps this only serves to welcome a sequel.
If you liked this book, I recommend:
Vernon God Little by DBC Pierre
The Adrian Mole series by Sue Townsend
posted by Yoong Family at 1:03 pm
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