Contemporary Reads: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time (2003) by Mark Haddon won several awards and was even shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize when it was first published. Its protagonist/narrator is Christopher who is an autistic boy. Christopher decides to write a murder mystery book when he finds out his neighbour Mrs Shear's dog has been killed. He starts investigating the 'murder' and recording his experiencies on this book. Everything we learn about Christopher's life is through him. This gives the reader a precious insight into the boy's pathos in such an effective way that I couldn't help being touched by everthing that happened to him throughtout the novel.
Chirstopher lives alone with his father in Swindon. His father has told him his mother had died in hospital of a heart attack. However, we soon find out that she is alive and lives in London. She had been having an affair with Mr Shear and had now moved in with him. She writes weekly letters to Christopher that his dad has been hiding and keeping until Chirstopher is older. It turns out that it was Christopher's father the one who killed Mrs Shear's dog in a fit of rage. These two revelations frighten Christopher and make him decide to ran away to his mother's.
This is one of the sweetest most moving book I have ever read. A great crossover success for children's author Mark Haddon.