Strengths of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime

            One of the greatest strengths of Mark Haddon’s The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime is its ability to offer something different to each reader depending on where he or she is in life. Everyone can take something different from the story. For example, a young child would see the story as simply an entertaining mystery novel that poses questions about gaining independence and growing up. Teenagers the same age as or older than the narrator can put themselves into Christopher’s shoes and experience empathy when imagining how difficult life would be with the mental problems that so obviously affect Christopher’s ability to live in mainstream society. Even adults could benefit from the book because their parental instinct and desire to help the young narrator would be the driving forces throughout their reading of the story, so the book would teach them about life in yet a different way. The novel is complicated and has many levels and can therefore be enjoyed more than once, and in a different way each time. No matter what level the book is read on, from the most superficial to the most complex, it poses questions about life on a larger scale through the medium of a very simple story. Not only does it pose different questions depending on where the reader is in life, but it also poses universal questions to all readers such as how to cope with loss. The genius of the book lies in the fact that it seems to be a very simple novel, but when dissected, it reveals deep insight about life and how different age groups have different perspectives and read stories in a different way while at the same time, no matter how young or old and no matter how mentally able or disabled, some life questions stay the same.

            Another incredible strength of the novel is the way it allows the reader to feel for a short time that he or she is in the position of someone with the medical condition that Christopher has. For a book to convey the experience, mindset, and thought-processes of a person with Aspergers or autism or a similar disorder is a difficult job because it is so unrelatable and unimaginable for those of us without such disabilities. The way that the author accomplishes the complex task of allowing the audience to relate to Christopher in such a way is to give him many characteristics that the average reader can relate to. For example, despite his many differences from the typical teenager, at his core, he still maintains the spirit of a rebellious teenager who desires independence and adventure and has difficulty obeying the rules set forth by his parents. He also has the goals and aspirations of a normal teenager in that he wants to do well in school so that he can live on his own and provide for himself. Many readers can relate to these aspects of Christopher’s personality, which therefore helps them understand his unusual, distorted point of view in a deeper way. Instead of just noting that many of Christopher’s beliefs or thought processes, such as his theory that whether a day is good or bad depends on what cars he sees that day, are completely unreasonable and irrational, readers begin to understand his logic behind such beliefs instead of just seeing him as crazy. Through this strength of the book, Haddon was able to give a voice to a group of people tat are not usually heard and help increase understanding and therefore acceptance.

Most Memorable Books

In no particular order...
1. Dear American Airlines by Jonathan Miles: The entire book is written in the form of a complaint letter to American Airlines because the narrator's flight got cancelled, and according to him, missing the flight essentially ruined his life. As someone with a lawyer's personality who loves to complain, I will always be inspired by this 180-page complaint letter.
2. Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier: It was my ID book; therefore, it is stuck in my mind forever. Every time I see the cover of it in a store, my heart drops because it reminds me of writing that paper. Despite the torture I went through with that book because of the paper, I still thoroughly love the book, and if you can love a book after being forced to write a 36-page paper on it, it must be a pretty incredible book.
3. Mitch Albom's books including The Five People You Meet in Heaven, Tuesdays with Morrie, and For One More Day: They are all extremely short (less than 200 pages) and unbelievably simple. In fact, the story of each book is explained by the titles. One is about the five people you meet in heaven; one is about a boy who spends his Tuesdays with an old man named Morrie; and one is about if you could live for one more day after death. The books are incredibly simple, even down to the language of them, yet they make readers think about life and humanity in such complex ways.
4. Toni Morrison's A Mercy: It contains what I think is the absolute best line from a book ever. "To be given dominion over another is a hard thing; to wrest dominion over another is a wrong thing; to give dominion of yourself to another is a wicked thing."
5. The History of Love by Nicole Krauss: It is my favorite book of all time, but I barely even remember the plot. There is a book inside a book, and there are two separate stories going on at the same time that don't even come together until near the end of the book. Despite its complexities, it is simply beautiful.
6. James Frey's A Million Little Pieces (and My Friend Leonard): When I found out that James Frey was a fraud and that the story was not in a fact a memoir, I didn't care. I loved it all the same. Though the way the story was written could be described as severely lacking eloquence and proper grammar, it seemed to have some power over me. Also, it is my favorite book cover ever, and, yes, I do judge a book based on its cover.

Example of Excellent Storytelling

"It was inconceivable to me that there could be more than one way to play in the dirt, but there it was. Doug couldn't get it right. And thats why I whacked him. Bang! On both ears, just like I saw on The Three Stooges. Being three years old was no excuse for disorderly play habits. For example, I would use my mother's kitchen spoon to scoop out a ditch. Then, I would carefully lay out a line of blue blocks. I never mixed my food, and I never mixed my blocks. Blue blocks went with blue blocks, and red blocks with red ones. But Doug would lean over and put a red block on top of the blue ones. Couldn't he see how wrong that was? After I had whacked him, I sat back down and played. Correctly. Sometimes, when I got frustrated with Doug, my mother would walk over and yell at me. I don't think she ever saw the terrible things he did. She just saw me whack him. I could usually ignore her, but if my father was there, too, then he would get really mad and shake me, and then I would cry."


This is a passage from Look Me in the Eye: My Life with Asperger's by John Elder Robison. As the title suggests, the book is an autobiographical account of John Elder's life with Asperger's, and it is told through many stories from his childhood before being diagnosed as an Aspergian and his commentary upon them as an adult who is now aware of how strange his behavior as a child was. The main reason that he is such a good storyteller is because he gives the reader insight into the thought-processes and mindset of a person with Aspergers despite the fact that it is very difficult to imagine how life with such a disorder would be. This short passage, which John Elder used to begin his book, reveals that John Elder was different from most children in many ways such as his impatience, violence, obsessive compulsive behaviors, high expectations from others and his lack of understanding when those expectations were not met, lack of social grace, inability to see situations from other people's perspectives, and other people's inability to see things from his warped perspective. It is incredible how such a short passage of a story is not only entertaining but also reveals so much about how exactly Aspergers made him different in a setting that many readers can relate to, which is very important considering that Aspergers is certainly not a relatable subject.