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  • I got outraged, I got overjoyed, I laughed, and I probably would have cried if it were socially acceptable for boys to do so while reading a book in public.

    

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• ― Bossdog said on Aug 2, 2007 about the Paperback edition| Add your feedback

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  • the narrator is a 15-year-old boy with Asperger's Syndrome.
    interesting insight

    

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• ― beffeb said on Jun 25, 2008 about the Audio CD edition| Add your feedback

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  • Written in a very unique style, told from the perspective of a young autistic boy determined to solve the mystery of a murdered dog. The dog-murder is merely a red herring, a way to examine this boy's life and how he deals with the world around him. An interesting idea and and intriguing read... at ... Continue

    Written in a very unique style, told from the perspective of a young autistic boy determined to solve the mystery of a murdered dog. The dog-murder is merely a red herring, a way to examine this boy's life and how he deals with the world around him. An interesting idea and and intriguing read... at first. But the rambling "inner thoughts" style becomes exhausting by the end of the book, and the ending felt extremely rushed. There were 5 or 6 pages left and the book didn't feel as if it was building towards a conclusion. And then it was just over. Wrapped up clumsily in a couple pages.

    

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• ― Cuzzin Todd said on Mar 28, 2008 about the Paperback edition| Add your feedback

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  • Unique, quick read

  • An easy and enjoyable read about the experiences of a teenage boy with Asperger's (a form of autism) and his attempt to unravel the mysterious death of his neighbor's dog, making many discoveries on the way.

    

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• ― Chezmerelda said on Aug 2, 2007 about the Paperback edition| Add your feedback

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  • An interesting book.

    

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• ― Berylene said on Jul 16, 2007 about the Paperback edition| Add your feedback

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  • This book was hard to read, especially in the short bursts I had available. It moved a little slowly and made me feel a bit like the narrator as I read the flow of his thoughts. I realized that stylized first person narration is not for me.

    

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• ― jbaglio said on May 8, 2007 about the Paperback edition| Add your feedback

Narrated by a fifteen-year-old autistic savant obsessed with Sherlock Holmes, this dazzling novel weaves together an old-fashioned mystery, a contemporary coming-of-age story, and a fascinating excursion into a mind incapable of processing emotions.

Christopher John Francis Boone knows all the countries of the world and their capitals and every prime number up to 7,057. Although gifted with a superbly logical brain, Christopher is autistic. Everyday interactions and admonishments have little meaning for him. At fifteen, Christopher’s carefully constructed world falls apart when he finds his neighbour’s dog Wellington impaled on a garden fork, and he is initially blamed for the killing.

Christopher decides that he will track down the real killer, and turns to his favourite fictional character, the impeccably logical Sherlock Holmes, for inspiration. But the investigation leads him down some unexpected paths and ultimately brings him face to face with the dissolution of his parents’ marriage. As Christopher tries to deal with the crisis within his own family, the narrative draws readers into the workings of Christopher’s mind.

And herein lies the key to the brilliance of Mark Haddon’s choice of narrator: The most wrenching of emotional moments are chronicled by a boy who cannot fathom emotions. The effect is dazzling, making for one of the freshest debut in years: a comedy, a tearjerker, a mystery story, a novel of exceptional literary merit that is great fun to read.

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• autismRecommended for Honorspurple bookcasefiction2000spaperbacklibraryDramaMy favoritesHighly Recommend
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