Rating: 
Summary: A Fantastic Read!
Review: His name is Christopher John Francis Boone. He is fifteen years old, two months and a few days. He is autistic, or more precisely he has Asperger's Syndrome, which is a form of high-functionning autism. He likes regularity, routines, organizes everything in patterns, won't wear or eat anything yellow or brown, likes dogs but doesn't like to be touched by humans, which he has trouble understanding and does not like to make eye contact with them. He lives with his father. He also likes going out at night and walking in the neighbordhood.
This is how, one night, he discovers Wellington, the neighbor's dog, killed with a gardening fork. This is how he decides to do some detective work, like his idol Sherlock Holmes, whom he likes because he has a sharp mind, to find out who the murderer is. But investigating means going to talk to others, and his fragile world will thus be at stake. At the same time, Christopher, who likes mathematics and science, studies to take A Level Mathematics. The novel is well-written, with information about Asperger's Syndrome. The author worked with autistic children and thus knows a lot about it, which makes the character of Christopher, who is also the narrator, realistic. The sentences are simple, organized, and the text is illustrated by drawings, lists, patterns and formulas.
The chapters are not titled with cardinal numbers but prime numbers, because Christopher likes them. This is an amazing first novel -- extremely compelling and certainly worth OWNING. (Yes, stop borrowing books!) Don't miss your chance to pick up a copy! You'll enjoy this book greatly! Another Amazon quick pick I'd like to recommend is WILL@epicqwest.com by Tom Grimes, another very original, highly entertaining read.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant and absorbing
Review: It's been years since I've read through a novel in essentially one sitting. That's how absorbing this one is. I heard excerpts from the novel read on BBC Radio before I read the book and I was sold. The novel is amazing, not just because of the convincing way the author assumes the voice of the protagonist, a 15-year-old autistic from Swindon named Christopher, but because of the humanity he endows all of the characters with, from the seriously troubled father to the multitude of confused and harried police officers that Christopher interacts with. Like others here, I was also struck and mesmerized by the excursions into other parts of Christopher's mind, particularly the parts that are genius at math and science. This novel is much more than the sum of its parts. It can be read as (not limited to but including) a detective story, a Bildungsroman, a tale of family conflict, and a meditation on memory, socialization, and information, all in one. The tone is never one of bathos -- you feel Christopher's pain and confusion, and you are caught up in his plight, but you never feel manipulated to pity him. Absolutely brilliant.
Rating:
Summary: Wow
Review: This is one of the best books I have ever read. For me, I loved it- it was perfectly human and perfectly written and it made me feel when reading it.
Rating:
Summary: A Different View of the World
Review: I found Mark Haddon's The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time an amazing read. The author's writing skillfully conveys the frustrations and concerns of the protagonist, an autistic teenager, with his world and those of his caregivers with him. This is done while maintaining the protagonist's point of view and addressing the general themes of trust and safety. I am a special educator, and, as I read this book, I am reminded of students, past and present, with whom I have worked and work. Their seemingly pointless rituals and behaviors are just as important to them as my morning cup of coffee is to me. They are able to make sense of and feel safe with the world around them by providing it with a structure. The protagonist of the book, Christopher Boone, does this by using his abilities, perceptions, and logic. While using Christopher's words to describe his world and responses to it, the author provides the reader with insight and empathy for the people--including Christopher--in that world. I strongly recommend this book to people working with those who have "special needs." The author also addresses the universal needs of trust and safety. What happens when trust is loss and feelings of safety, so related to trust, shattered? How are these restored when they are destroyed? Christopher's responses to these losses may be unorthodox, but they are human. The behaviors of those around Christopher are also human. This story is an empathetic portrayal of a human situation. It is, in short, a book to read.
Rating:
Summary: You've read nothing like this before!
Review: This book will knock your socks off! I guarentee you've never read anything like this before. Christopher gives Rain Man a run for his money! Mark Haddon has done a superb job of creating the character of Autistic Christopher. What's more, as you start reading, he's not a character any longer, he's real...In this book Christopher has found his neighbor's dog murdered, so he decides to play detective, like his idol Sherlock Holmes, and find out who killed him. So begins the journey, which actually leads into ta much larger adventure, as Christopher begins to uncover that things in his life are not as they seem. You see, Christopher may be autistic, but he's a wiz at math and science and he's also unusually perceptive. The way Haddon goes through Chris's thought process and daily activities is pure genius. And to add depth to the story, I found his parents & some of the other characters in this book, also very "real". There aren't any perfect people in this book, this is real life. I sincerely recommend this book to you. It's a quick read at only 220 pages, and the wit at which Haddon writes, makes those pages fly by. Very rarely does a book make me laugh out-loud, and this book did that several times. Bravo!
Rating:
Summary: More stars, please
Review: Why is it that some books get all the attention and appear on bestseller lists, while others languish, not in obscurity, but alas, not getting the attention they deserve? "The Curious Incident" is one such book, for it completely deserves to be number one on all bestseller lists. Also recommended: Jackson McCrae's "The Bark of the Dogwood"
Rating:
Summary: Autism's and it's many faces
Review: This is a wonderfully perceptive look at the world through the child of autism. Though this is a short book, it is easy to read and can be read in one night (Which I did). Very hard to put down until it is finished. So many things I didn't understand about this illness that are brought to light through this book.
"The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time" is a poignant and well written book of lessons learned with emotions that run the gambet from sadness to laughter.
Rating: 
Summary: Going against the tide here
Review: I really struggled with commenting on this one.
The examples of Aspie traits are brilliantly conveyed: fear of certain colors, following rigid daily routines, hating to be touched, etc. For the first half of the book, Christopher is quite engaging. Then we come to The Discovery ... downhill from there. I just wasn't buying that knife.
Frankly, I was rather shocked that Christopher was seriously (Aspies don't joke - they say what they mean) considering stabbing a certain person, but realized he wouldn't be able to get what he needed from that person at that time if he did. HELLO? He would be more concerned about being locked up forever (either in a hospital or prison) I'd think; he's terrified of crossing the authorities already over a mere "caution". This incident led me to believe that he is a potential danger-to-himself-and-others. Which leads to ... the subway/tube train incident, where he nearly gets himself killed, then starts ranting about cutting off strangers' fingers (which he has mentioned occasionally) because they show concern for him. I guess I just didn't buy into the premise that he was capable of such violent thoughts, yet had not gotten into more serious trouble than just hitting a classmate and a cop. In the real world, the authorities would never have let someone go who was on the tracks without permission; Christopher would have been taken into custody for it.
On a related note, I was troubled that he seemed quite so paranoid? I chalked that up, at least in part, to the Stranger Danger material with which he is inundated at school. Was that was a joke - along with Christopher's hatred of France?
I had given up caring much about him by the very end. I did muster up enough enthusiasm to find hid dad's choice of gift inappropriate given the color scheme.
Overall, it seemed as though the author was intent on setting up an Aspie protagonist, which he does fairly well (see above re: knife). It was the plot that was the problem.
Rating:
Summary: Simply Terrific
Review: The plot of this novel is quite simple. Christopher Boone is a 15 year-old autistic boy who, after finding his neighbor's poodle kill by a garden fork, sets out to discover the identity of the murderer. Through his "detecting" Christopher discovers the culprit but in doing so he also discovers so much more about himself. But the true discovery is left for the readers of this wonderful novel who discover not only the uniquely different world as seen through Christopher's eyes but also his truly underlying genius. I understand from previous reviewers that author Mark Haddon had actually worked with autistic children - and it is reflected in his brilliant first-person narrative, spoken through Christopher's authentic voice. He shows how Christopher is neither capable of judging or ascribing any emotions to anything he experiences and thus is able to simplify his complex world. Haddon doesn't coddle his character nor does he minimize or exaggerate the difficulties of Christopher's parents have in dealing with a child with Christopher's condition. And therein lies the true appreciation for this simply terrific novel. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time is a 5-star read that should not be missed.
Rating:
Summary: One of a kind
Review: Like many other books that show us the inner workings of an unusual mind--THE LIFE OF PI by martel, or Jackson McCrae's BARK OF THE DOGWOOD, this book takes us into territory that the average person wouldn't encounter. And yet THE CURIOUS INCIDENT has something totallly different going for it, for the voice it uses is like no other. The form of this book is unique, as is its premise and execution. I'm not usually one to go by Today Show picks, but this one did the trick for me. Also would recommend "Drop City" by Boyle, and "The Bark of the Dogwood" by McCrae.
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