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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
May 27, 2003 -
Formats
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OverDrive Listen audiobook
- ISBN: 9781456126797
- File size: 174580 KB
- Duration: 06:03:42
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Languages
- English
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Levels
- Lexile® Measure: 1090
- Text Difficulty: 7-9
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Reviews
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Publisher's Weekly
Starred review from April 7, 2003
Christopher Boone, the autistic 15-year-old narrator of this revelatory novel, relaxes by groaning and doing math problems in his head, eats red—but not yellow or brown—foods and screams when he is touched. Strange as he may seem, other people are far more of a conundrum to him, for he lacks the intuitive "theory of mind" by which most of us sense what's going on in other people's heads. When his neighbor's poodle is killed and Christopher is falsely accused of the crime, he decides that he will take a page from Sherlock Holmes (one of his favorite characters) and track down the killer. As the mystery leads him to the secrets of his parents' broken marriage and then into an odyssey to find his place in the world, he must fall back on deductive logic to navigate the emotional complexities of a social world that remains a closed book to him. In the hands of first-time novelist Haddon, Christopher is a fascinating case study and, above all, a sympathetic boy: not closed off, as the stereotype would have it, but too open—overwhelmed by sensations, bereft of the filters through which normal people screen their surroundings. Christopher can only make sense of the chaos of stimuli by imposing arbitrary patterns ("4 yellow cars in a row made it a Black Day, which is a day when I don't speak to anyone and sit on my own reading books and don't eat my lunch and Take No Risks
"). His literal-minded observations make for a kind of poetic sensibility and a poignant evocation of character. Though Christopher insists, "This will not be a funny book. I cannot tell jokes because I do not understand them," the novel brims with touching, ironic humor. The result is an eye-opening work in a unique and compelling literary voice. (June 17)Forecast:Considerable buzz abroad—rights sold in Brazil, Denmark, Finland, France, Greece, Holland, Italy, Japan, Norway, Spain, Sweden and the U.K.—and a film deal (rights bought by Hey Day, the makers of
Harry Potter) augur well for this engaging debut. -
AudioFile Magazine
Chapter 2, begins Christopher Boone, the remarkable protagonist of Mark Haddon's remarkable novel. Christopher has Asperger's syndrome, a version of autism. He doesn't like to be touched, understands only two emotions, speaks the literal truth, requires order, and loves numbers, including the prime numbers with which he organizes the chapters of the book he is writing. Cast as a mystery story told in the first-person (Christopher wants to discover who killed the neighbor's dog), this is actually a tale about how we make sense of a confusing world. It is funny, sad, uplifting, and moving all at once. It is a must-read. Make that a must-listen, for Jeff Woodman is masterful. His Christopher, with the light voice of an adolescent boy, is precise, dogmatic, and revealingly flat when discussing emotions. Dad's blue-collar accent is a heartbreaking mix of stolid, patient, and frustrated. Mom sounds frantic. Even the people Christopher meets on the London Underground are miniature voice portraits. It's all perfect, and perfectly unforgettable. A.C.S. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award (c) AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine
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Formats
- OverDrive Listen audiobook
subjects
Languages
- English
Levels
- Lexile® Measure:1090
- Text Difficulty:7-9
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