The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, children’s book by British author Mark Haddon, published in 2003.

Mathematical genius Christopher Boone is 15 and may have Asperger syndrome, a form of autism in which those who have it are often unable to interpret social or emotional cues from the people around them; in the second chapter, Christopher tells readers that he cannot read facial expressions, and in the sixth chapter he explains that, because of his literal, nonironic approach to the world, he cannot tell jokes. Disliking metaphor, Christopher does not willingly read any form of literature apart from detective novels. One night, he discovers his neighbour’s poodle, Wellington, impaled on a garden fork. Wrongly blamed for the killing, he decides to imitate one of his literary heroes, Sherlock Holmes, and investigate the murder using similar deductive logic, and to write about it as he does so. (The title of Haddon’s book is taken from an 1893 Holmes story by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle called “The Adventure of Silver Blaze.”) During his investigation, he also uncovers facts about the reasons for his parents’ separation and, believing himself to be in danger from the killer, runs away to London.

Haddon was criticised by what some members of and advocates for the neurodivergent community considered to be stereotyping, although Christopher’s specific neurodivergence is not mentioned in the book, and Christopher himself says only that he has “some behavioural difficulties.” Whatever those difficulties may be, Christopher rises to every occasion, despite the challenges: although he is uncomfortable talking with strangers, he endures the stress of doing so in order to gain information he needs, and although he fears travelling alone, which he has not done before, he finds his own way by commuter train to London. He is a prodigiously talented problem solver and a youthful hero of his time, one reason for the book’s tremendous popularity.

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By turns funny and sad, but always moving, Christopher’s literal-minded observations of the world around him—where adults shout at him for not obeying arbitrary rules that he doesn’t understand or know the need for, and he has to impose pattern and routine on the chaos that confronts him—make him a character to be admired, not pitied. Haddon’s skill lies in writing so that, although Christopher may be unaware of emotional undercurrents and nuances of mood, the reader is made aware of them. It is a skilfully written book, suitable for older children and adults alike.

A theatrical production of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Timedebuted in 2017. As of 2024, a film version, with a screenplay by Haddon and director Steve Kloves, was in production.