A Curious Incident Of A Dog In The Nightime

A curious incident of a dog in the night time - Mark Haddon

When Michiko Kakutani of the New York Times compared this book to ‘Catcher in the Rye’, I thought I had a good idea about what the book would be about. But this is not just any book about a boy coming-of-age. Take the growing-up pains and take away the wisdom to understand these changes – and you have the 15 year old lead character Christopher Boone – an autistic child with a great memory and High IQ whose worst fear is crowded places. The book has been written as if the boy were telling us his story. The story starts with the murder of a much-loved dog and the boy embarks on a journey to discover the truth behind the murder. But the truth is never what it seems and his journey leads him to more unpleasant truths than he is ready to cope with. Through his troubling discovery, as in his life he tries to bring order and stability by ridiculously simplifying things: 5 red cars in a row means a good day! He seeks his solace in Maths and Science and all things logical, while more than once expressing his dislike for the illogical, irrational desires of the human race. He wishes to distance himself from the crazy ways of feeling, worrying, emotional human beings. And yet as the story unfolds, the boy’s intrinsic human qualities come to light even though he may not identify it himself. His compassion for a dead dog that symbolizes loyalty and friendship to him, His fear of the unknown, His loss in trust when he thinks his father has lied to him, His desire to achieve, …all this and more makes us realize that he is not that different from us. We realize that behind that logical, fantastically brilliant brain and the label of “Learning Disabled”, there is a human being struggling with the chaos and complexity of human life that some among us are better equipped to handle. We begin to empathize with our young hero, cheering him on and hoping that he gets through the day.

The book is moving, illuminating (there is a lot to be learnt from a beautiful mind :) ), entertaining and above all deeply affecting. A great read !