The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time

I borrowed this novel by Mark Haddon from the local library on Cathy's recommendation.

The book started with young Christopher deciding to find out who killed his neighbour's dog with a garden fork, hence the book's title. Christopher, who has Asperger Syndrome, is great with mathematics but totally dysfunctional in social interactions and looking after himself.

The book is not what it seems though. Rather, it is a portrait of the breakdown in the marriage of Christopher's parents, the burden of looking after him being a major factor.

As a book for the "younger readers", The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time has its obvious merits. But to me, it was ultimately an annoying reading experience, since I always have problems with books, films or songs by adults "pretending" to be kids. While the book is written from the first-person perspective of Christopher, I can always feel the presence of a smart adult behind, pulling strings.