the curious incident of the dog in the night-time, a Novel by Mark Haddon

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The book portrays the point of view of a 15-year-old autistic boy, Christopher, who sees himself as a mathematician with some behavioral difficulties. He is the narrator of the book and he seemed so matter of fact and sure of his opinions, that I was tempted to rate the book lower, just based on that. 

It leaves you feeling that you might just really understand what autism really is and if you have had much exposure to it you know that it is not easy to define. 

My own experiences suggest that this boy's emotional range and response is just one vantage point of how a autistic young man would approach this plot. I think it is better to just say that this is not a book about Asperger's really but it is a clever story with much to ponder.

Christopher is an outsider, someone who is different and sees the world in a different and interesting way.  The author doesn't say that Christopher has autism or any disorder but the book covers and promotional material do mention Asperger, high-functioning autism, and savant syndrome.

In some cases the incidents that take place in the search for the dog are funny. At the same time the focus on emotion and feelings are so well done that, rather than funny, it might be said that it is chilling.

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Quote by Mark Hadden

“I think prime numbers are like life. They are very logical but you could never work out the rules, even if you spent all your time thinking about them” 

“On the fifth day, which was a Sunday, it rained very hard. I like it when it rains hard. It sounds like white noise everywhere, which is like silence but not empty.” 

“All the other children at my school are stupid. Except I'm not meant to call them stupid, even though this is what they are.” 

“I like dogs. You always know what a dog is thinking. It has four moods. Happy, sad, cross and concentrating. Also, dogs are faithful and they do not tell lies because they cannot talk.