(Sorry for the onslaught of posts; I wound up getting behind on posting this month due to a big project I was working on in order to receive certification in technical writing. I wound up with a 31-page document on book cover design and no posts on the books I'd been reading. This is the last one and then I'm all caught up. Promise!)
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time continues my in-depth look at people with special needs. I found myself reading in a pattern that really broadened my knowledge and make me think twice about everything I thought I knew.
(And on top of the books I've been reading/reviewing, I've also found myself in love with a new show on NBC entitled Parenthood, which also deals with an autistic child.)
The novel was written by a man who works with autistic children for a living, which automatically lent its own sense of authenticity to the piece. The novel is told in first person from the eyes of a teenager named Christopher. Christopher has Asperger's Syndrome and by reading his account in first person, I learned more about what a person with AS goes through than I would reading a second-hand account. I think I learned more about the internal workings of Asperger's with this book than I did with Jodi Picoult's House Rules. In fact, like House Rules, this novel revolves around a mystery. Christopher discovers that a neighborhood dog has been killed and decides that he was murdered. He sets about looking for clues, not realizing that by doing so, he appears to be suspicious himself. His dad doesn't want him continuing on with his detective work and bans him from snooping around the neighborhood.
There were moments that the novel read oddly or that I found myself unable to connect with the character, but the nature of the piece almost required that. The disjointed writing and narrow focus was very much Christopher and felt very natural for the character. This was an interesting novel with twists and turns I didn't see coming. Overall, I recommend it, especially since it's a glimpse inside the mind of what a person with Asperger's might be going through.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time continues my in-depth look at people with special needs. I found myself reading in a pattern that really broadened my knowledge and make me think twice about everything I thought I knew.
(And on top of the books I've been reading/reviewing, I've also found myself in love with a new show on NBC entitled Parenthood, which also deals with an autistic child.)
The novel was written by a man who works with autistic children for a living, which automatically lent its own sense of authenticity to the piece. The novel is told in first person from the eyes of a teenager named Christopher. Christopher has Asperger's Syndrome and by reading his account in first person, I learned more about what a person with AS goes through than I would reading a second-hand account. I think I learned more about the internal workings of Asperger's with this book than I did with Jodi Picoult's House Rules. In fact, like House Rules, this novel revolves around a mystery. Christopher discovers that a neighborhood dog has been killed and decides that he was murdered. He sets about looking for clues, not realizing that by doing so, he appears to be suspicious himself. His dad doesn't want him continuing on with his detective work and bans him from snooping around the neighborhood.
There were moments that the novel read oddly or that I found myself unable to connect with the character, but the nature of the piece almost required that. The disjointed writing and narrow focus was very much Christopher and felt very natural for the character. This was an interesting novel with twists and turns I didn't see coming. Overall, I recommend it, especially since it's a glimpse inside the mind of what a person with Asperger's might be going through.
I love this book. In fact, it's sitting on my shelf right in front of me at this moment! I'm glad you enjoyed it as well. ::smiles::
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