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Gail66

What do peeps with AS think of the book "the curious incident of the dog in the nightime"?

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I'm still new to everything AS coz my 5yo son was only diagnosed a couple of months ago.

 

I've managed to get a copy of this book from the library and read it quickly (for me :rolleyes:) and found it very interesting to see what it might be like inside the mind of someone with AS.

 

Now I'm really interested to know what anyone else who has read it thinks of it but especially peeps with AS.

 

Cheers Gail :robbie:

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Hi gail -

I wouldn't give too much credence to the book if I were you... the author himself has said in many interviews that he knows pretty much nothing about autism apart from a few stereotypes, that 'Christopher' was never written as an autistic character, and that it was the publisher who promoted the idea of autism.

As a quick link I've posted a wikipedia page, but you might have to look a bit further afield to find confirmation...

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Curious_Incident_of_the_Dog_in_the_Night-time

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Haddon

 

In my own opinion The Curious Incident is right up there with 'Rainman' in terms of offering stereotypical models of disability to find the widest audience. Whether that was Mark Haddon's intention from the outset or not (I think it's interesting that TCI was the first book of his to get published, yet apparently the first book he'd written for an adult audience, suggesting his children's books weren't considered commercially viable(?)), he's certainly made a lot of money from Christopher's Aspilebrity!

 

Can't speak for people with AS - but from a purely 'factual' POV there's not a lot in Mark Haddon's self appraisal of his book to recommend it.

 

L&P

 

BD

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My daughter loved this book when she was first diagnosed at age 15 - she found a lot to identify with and explain what she was. It helped at school as when she started telling fellow pupils she had AS, she was able to relate it to the book, which many of them had read. So whatever its limitations, I think the book has done a fair bit to raise awareness of ASD, especially among younger people, and to create a basis for ongoing discussion.

 

I also read it at about the same time and I thought it was a good read, although my daughter wasn't a lot like Christopher.

 

That was back then - now she has read a lot more and thought a lot more about ASD, my daughter scorns the book as presenting an unrealistic "identikit" picture of AS - she said it was like he'd tried to cram into the character every single stereotypical attribute of AS he could find. She has a point, I think.

 

K x

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You'd probably be better off reading Donna Williams' books 'Nobody Nowhere' and 'Somebody Somewhere'. She gives a very readable, coherent account of how the world looked to her as a child, and how her perception changed as she grew older. But bear in mind that a diagnosis of autism is the identification of a broad set of behavioural characteristics, and that those characteristics can vary widely between individuals.

 

cb

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i enjoyed the book and was a bit resistant to reading it at 1st because i dont read novels.

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My husband read this book and gave it to me, saying, "this book is about you." he certainly saw a lot of me in christopher, but i did not identify with christopher as closely, just a few things. It does seem to cram in every stereotype about autism, but i think it's done a lot to raise awareness as well.

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I had never really heard of aspergers or much about autism before I read the book and it was what made me do more research into it. There were a few little things in it that got me thinking. I think it is a good book, as a novel though, not a book on educating people about autism.

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i think very well written as can relate alot to christopher and his daily struggles /difficulties he faces everyday alot people i spoke don't like way it is based around someone who 'isn't real' but there alot written out there by A.S people teens /adults etc so good to see something 'different' out there this was first book a SENCO at my secondary school suggested was good read after official diagnosis was given and made i found gave me base foundations on information research to find 'hidden' 'missing' identity that i never knew existed especially the feelings he had i found very touching emotional to read as felt like i was reading a book wrote specifically for me that how good i found it spot on!!! as book go! really helped me work 'stuff out' in my own confused lost head!!! i thought as reading it 'that's me' that is! i thought wrote a book about and around 'me' i got very teary when reading it and lump in my throat made me realise some struggles i had faced in past was A.S based confusion around myself identity my life i discovered a lot reading it! was comfort reading it! i would suggest it to anyone who been newly diagnosed!

 

XKX

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I spent the whole time reading it feeling quite frustrated at the fact that everyone who mentioned the book had said he had Asperger's, but it wasn't mentioned anywhere in the book. I find things like that difficult to cope with.

 

 

ETA: 'Cope' is a strong word! 'Difficult to get my head around' might be a better way of putting it.

Edited by Boy

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As I expected - a variety of replies... :)

 

It's good that some people have found it helpful whether they have AS/ASD or not.

 

I don't know enough about AS/ASD to comment on whether it's good or bad but I think it has helped me to understand a little how my 5yo son's mind may work which can only be a good thing IMO ;)

Edited by Gail66

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I must admit I've never read this, I suppose it's because I first heard about it because of the Autism associations, so the idea of reading it sounded a bit too much like 'work'. I'll have to get round to it sometime though.

 

Sorry if this is a bit of a tangent, but I've often wondered whether there might be some merit in writing childrens fiction myself, as it's a genre I'm a great fan of. I've written a few short stories, and find I struggle with the attributes of the central character having to be largly myself, and other characters mostly based on the way people react to me. I've always tended to think that my inability to properly understand other people would mean I can't write fiction, but maybe there might be some merit in there being more books out there about autistic characters who find out people aren't quite as scary as they seem? I don't know, but I'd quite like to know what other people think.

Edited by jfjyhtftr1

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I wouldn't give too much credence to the book if I were you... the author himself has said in many interviews that he knows pretty much nothing about autism apart from a few stereotypes, that 'Christopher' was never written as an autistic character, and that it was the publisher who promoted the idea of autism

Can't speak for people with AS - but from a purely 'factual' POV there's not a lot in Mark Haddon's self appraisal of his book to recommend it.

More recently MH has spoken out against people using The Curious Incident as a text-book. The words after, bolted, door, horse, locking and stable come to mind...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/hay-festival/9311242/Hay-Festival-2012-Mark-Haddon-dont-use-Curious-Incident...-as-an-autism-textbook.html

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You'd probably be better off reading Donna Williams' books 'Nobody Nowhere' and 'Somebody Somewhere'. She gives a very readable, coherent account of how the world looked to her as a child, and how her perception changed as she grew older. But bear in mind that a diagnosis of autism is the identification of a broad set of behavioural characteristics, and that those characteristics can vary widely between individuals.

 

cb

 

I didn't know Donna has done a second book, I have only read Nobody Nowhere, which both I and my son (both aspies, but both not diagonosed at the time) found quite distressing as Donna had a terrible time of things. Could relate to her in some ways, though her ASD is more severe than mine. I'll have to look out for Somebody Somewhere, the title hints at a more positive episode.

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i read it, hmmmm slightly inaccurate in places, at least as far as im concerned. one of the only books ive actully read to the end, it was ite i guess. i could tap into some of it, but some of it doesnt apply to me, but then, how many pepole dont agree with my outlook? exactly lol so all in all, a good little book for parents and kids to read.

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I thought the book was not too bad, although inconsistent at one point.

Still, it would "fit" better if your son was 15 and not only 5 years old.

You might want to try "George and Sam: Autism in the Family by Charlotte Moore". The mother describes her two autistic sons through ages 1-12.

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Hi

 

I'm NT and so perhaps shouldn't be replying to this, however, I have an AS son. For me, the biggest thing that I took from this book was that I was constantly trying to look/apply logic to some of my son's behaviours, fact is, one cannot always apply logic. For example, four red cards parked in a row means it's going to be a bad day (or something along those lines - it's been a while since I read it) - how can one apply logic to that, though to Christopher, that perhaps was perfectly sensible. I thought it was a really good book in highlighting some issues faced and in particular, the volatile relationship between him and his father. If memory serves me correctly, the book covers an argument and then the next thing Christopher is sitting with a ripped shirt and his dad has a ###### nose (again, something along those lines). It shed a bit of light on my son's meltdowns in that sometimes I genuinely believe he loses control and afterwards has little or no recollection. I wasn't left with the impression that it stereotyped, but thought it was well written leaving me with one or two snippets that were perhaps applicable to my son's situation.

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Since being diagnosed with ASD (autism spectrum disorder) in her late teens, Sara Barrett has found herself becoming angry at the portrayal of autistic characters in books – none more so than The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time. Here’s why: I have autism and the lack of authentic autistic voices in books angers me (Guardian)

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