A Curious Incident of A Dog at Nighttime

Post Reply New Topic

It is my opinion in you set out to write a book about someone with autism you have already failed at depicting it
Sherlock homes if indeed he is on the spectrum is the only way write a book about something that has people in it
Even then I find the depictions of those on the spectrum poor at best I think basically it’s too early for us our condition has been known to science for too shorter time then for our writers to think in anything but black and white stereotypes

Well, the book is good, but it over-stereotypes Aspergers Syndrome if you ask me.

Fact - The author said he doesn't know much about Asperger's, and regrets it being used in the book description

I've also heard the book is being turned into a movie

Agreed with the "it's too stereotypical" statement. But it's better than most books, because it does allow you to understand the main character's world and his way of thinking; and it doesn't paint him as either pitiful or inspirational. The author seems to be using AS as primarily a way to get a character with a different type of mind, which would be interesting to use as a viewpoint for a story. I can live with that. If most authors thought of disabled characters as presenting unique narrative possibilities, we'd probably get a lot less of that stupid pitiful-and/or-inspirational nonsense.

Thanks for that explanation, Sora.

That sounds like me in many ways (super strong interest and really no care for understanding people; I don't share much and lecture to others all that often though), which is quite prototypical of AS.

I'm by no means severe in regards to Asperger's.

(Plenty of kids with AS in special ed too, as you said. I know one.)

I liked the book as a way to get in the character's mind, and how he saw as perfectly normal and reasonable the things that he did. I didn't make the connection with aspergers though, and I don't think he has it.

I've also read it as well and I found the character to be too stereotypical. I think that he functioned more at the level of Rain Man.

The way I remember the character from before I stopped reading reminds me of a poster they've put up in some places.
It's about autism. It's originally in Dutch, but I've found a bludgeoned version on the magic highway of the internet.
The translation used is sub-perfect, but you'll get the point from just looking at it - 'you are autistic if you are this, and you are this if you are autistic'.



Apologies for the giant picture. Coincidentally, the people who own that book here tend to be the people who put up these posters.
It's a blunt way of stereotyping. I agree with only some of these, and I've had a professional diagnosis for ten or more years.

I agree with what the above posters have said about how the book uses a crude stereotype, and I think that unfortunately it's probably done a lot of damage.

"The Curious Incident in The Dog in the Nighttime" is probably the most famous fictional book about Aspergers syndrome, at least here in the UK. It means a large number of the general public will base their picture of the condition solely on this book - I certainly did for many years. This can't be good news for real-life aspies, whose symptoms are often far less severe than Christopher's.

So I have mixed feelings about the book. Judging it purely as a work of fiction I thought it was very good...

I read the book years ago. I think the character has lower functioning traits and not aspergers. It was probably a marketing ploy to put aspergers on the cover to make it sell.

Overall I really liked the book, because it helped me understand my son better and it therefore has helped him too. I really appreciated the first-person point-of-view, and it helped me imagine what it might be like to perceive the world through ASD eyes. It reminded me that we all have an inner world and that what we perceive from a person's exterior can be and probably is vastly different than the interior. It has helped me empathize better with people of all neurotypes and has made me a better person.

I think it is a good book to recommend to NTs who are interested in learning about people on the spectrum. I have recommended it to teachers and family members. I think most NTs are intelligent/mature enough not to stereotype other people based on a work of fiction.

I enjoyed it for what it was, fiction. I thought he must be severely autistic though.