A Neurodivergent Boy and a Dead Dog

     I have taken a break from reading James Dashner's science fiction books and read something closer to the realms of reality. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime is a mystery novel written by Mark Haddon in 2003. The narrator is a fifteen-year-old boy, Christopher, and the book is written as if he is the book's author: according to the plot, he is handwriting THIS book.

    In the opening scene, Christopher notices a dead dog on his neighbor's backyard, a garden fork sticking out of its body. Christopher's first reaction wasn't surprisement, sadness, or anger; but wonder: who had killed the dog? He also felt its muzzle, which was still warm, and then stroked the body. In the second chapter, numbered #3, we find out a lot about Christopher. He knows all the countries and their capitals, and every prime number up to 7057. He likes prime numbers so much that the chapter numbers are prime numbers, which is why the second chapter is #3, and the first one is #2. Also he explains that the book he is writing (which is the book we are reading) is a mystery novel, and he is collecting evidence to figure out who killed Wellington, the dog. 

    Something that Christopher doesn't tell about himself, is that he is severely neurodivergent, which can be inferred from almost anywhere in the book. He is incredibly capable in all subjects, especially in maths (Christopher lives in England so math is called maths). However, he is not able to read very common face expressions, body language, and voice tones. Even at 15 years old, he uses VERY simple language, like somebody who is ten. Sometimes, when christopher is very frustrated, he rolls up on the floor and starts screaming, crying, flailing, and banging the floor, even if he is in the middle of a crowded mall, which has happened many times. And the worst thing is that Christopher HATES being touched in any way, and so his mom can't even bear hug him to restrain him, but has to watch him flailing on the floor and waiting for him to calm down.

    Christopher, for some of the stated reasons, is an example of an unreliable narrator, like Kambili from Purple Hibiscus. Kambili was an unreliable narrator because her view of the world was influenced by her abusive father. Christopher was too, because of his neurological disorders. Sometimes he states what he believes as fact, but it gets overturned later in the story; and how many other "facts" weren't overturned? 

    Overall, I would give this book a 10/10. It is a very interesting plot, and Christopher has many adventures finding out who killed Wellington, and many adventures after he did. And when Christopher did find the murderer, it was very unexpected.