'Lots of things are mysteries. But that doesn't mean there isn't an answer to them'
This is Christopher's murder mystery story. There are also no lies in this story because Christopher can't tell lies. Christopher does not like strangers or the colours yellow or brown or being touched. On the other hand, he knows all the countries in the world and their capital cities and every prime number up to 7507. When Christopher decides to find out who killed the neighbour's dog, his mystery story becomes more complicated than he could have ever predicted.
BACKSTORY: Meet the author and learn about the background to Christopher's story.
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The clash between Christopher's view of the world and the way it looks to the rest of us makes this an extraordinarily moving, often blackly funny read. It is hard to think of anyone who would not be moved and delighted by this book, so the decision to publish it simultaneously for older children and adults is certainly well-founded - Financial Times
A wonderful first person narrative of a boy with Asperger's Syndrome; funny, sad and extraordinarily original - Guardian
I'm all for hearing different voices in fiction and I got my wish with this book. The story showed just how someone with Asperger's might view the world. Christopher finds a dead dog and sets about trying to find the dog's killer, but the book is much more than a mystery story... I loved the way Christopher tries to bring order to his world by using Maths which he finds far easier to understand than people - Books for Keeps
So genuine...It is chillingly heartbreaking and passionately positive in equal measure - Books for Keeps
So what makes these different to any other set of classics? In a moment of inspiration Random House had the bright idea of actually asking Key stage 2 children what extra ingredients they could add to make children want to read. And does it work? Well, put it this way...my 13-year-old daughter announced that she had to read a book over the summer holiday and, without any prompting, spotted The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas...and proceeded to read it! Now, if you knew my 13-year-old daughter, you would realise that this is quite remarkable. She reads texts, blogs and tags by the thousand - but this is the first book she has read since going to high school, so all hail Vintage Classics! - National Association for the Teaching of English
Mark Haddon was born in 1962 in Northampton. He has done a variety of different jobs including working with disabled people, drawing illustrations and comic strips, writing and working as a painter. Haddon has written a whole range of different things including books for children and adults, poetry, TV screenplays and a play for the theatre.
Mark Haddon wrote and illustrated his first picture book at the age of twenty-five. Since then he has written many picture books including the ‘Agent Z’ series and the ‘Baby Dinosaur’ series. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time was published in 2003 and it was the first book ever to be published simultaneously in two editions – one for adults and one for children. The book was instantly a huge success and has won a whole host of prizes. Mark has won two BAFTAs for his work in writing TV screenplays for children and adults. He’s also published two more books for adults.