Curiouser and Curiouser: A Book Report

I've just completed the novel "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time" by Mark Haddon.

I think I developed a few neurotic tendencies as a result of reading this book. You see, it's written from the point of view of Christopher Boone, the 15-year-old autistic protagonist.

Christopher lives in a world of sensory overload, but he has a brilliant mind for mathematics, as is demonstrated by the plethora of math equations dotting the book (for which there is an appendix with solutions).

The curious incident referred to in the title is the murder of the neighbour's dog, which Christopher, a rabid fan of Sherlock Holmes (but not Arthur Conan Doyle because he's silly and believes in dead people because his son died in the first world war and he was being lonely, not logical) decides to solve the crime.

This book falls into the category of what I'd call "Internalized." There's not a lot of books that really seize the inner-workings of a character and leave you feeling like they're family. The protagonist-narrators I call to mind most quickly, that affected me most earnestly, were the title characters in both What's Eating Gilbert Grape? by Peter Hedges, which I read back in '91, and probably the Life of Pi, by Yann Martel, which I'd read last year.

This one, though, is different. A greatly misunderstood mental affliction, autism is essentially a state of hyperawareness, one you can never leave, so instead, you stay inside yourself. Visiting that headspace through this book is a really rewarding experience.

As the story is written from Christopher's perspective, it is written in a very stream of consciousness manner. The cadence, though, makes the overlong sentences easy to absorb, and actually makes it more engaging and real. (IE, the reference to Arthur Conan Doyle up top).

What I really loved, though, is how the boy never feels sorry for himself, never thinks he's less than others, and never questions the sanity behind his strange dispositions, like his refusal to be near or eat anything that's yellow or brown, or his belief that four yellow cars in a row are the sign of A Black Day. You would think that constant exposure to such a troubling mental condition would be sombre and depressing, but I found myself chuckling aloud often and always thoroughly engaged in the oddities of this boy's life.

This is not a "big" book, in that it is not filled with impressive happenings, smart words, or profound realizations. What it is, though, is endlessly enjoyable, expertly crafted, unique in its vision, and important in the battle to further increase social understanding of those afflicted with mental illness.

Those who know my reading habits well can back me up on the Tatter Test. This is simply the fact that I normally keep my books in very good condition, but the ones I really savour and love, that make the "bathtub book" ranking, have telltale signs of my enjoyment--rounded edges on the pages, the odd water stain, et al. The Curious Incident definitely has achieved Tatter Test status.

If what you love about books is how it transforms your point of view for awhile, this is indeed a novel that'll stand out from the pack.