Mark Haddon's Novel (2003)

Mark Haddon’s Novel - Christopher and Autism

The playscript of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time was adapted from the best-selling novel of the same title. Mark Haddon wrote the novel. It was published in 2003.

Christopher Boone

The novel is told from the first-person point of view of Christopher Boone, a 15-year-old boy living with Asperger Syndrome (or Asperger’s), a form of autism.

"A novel about difference"

The author, Mark Haddon, has always emphasised that the novel is NOT about autism or any other disorder.
In his blog, he wrote that the novel “is not a book about Asperger’s” and that it is instead “a novel about difference, about being an outsider, about seeing the world in a surprising and revealing way.”
Haddon believes that his novel has a universal appeal, dealing with themes and experiences that are relevant to all of us.

Praise - teenager with autism

However, the novel was quick to receive praise for the way in which it presented the mind of a teenager living with autism and for the way it explored the impact of autism on Christopher’s family.

Mark Haddon’s Novel - Setting and Success

The playscript of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time was adapted from the best-selling novel of the same title. Mark Haddon wrote the novel. It was published in 2003.

Contemporary British life

The novel, set in Swindon and London, depicts contemporary British life in a tragi-comic way, focussing on themes as serious as domestic violence and autism but also containing moments of uproarious comedy.

Success

The novel was published in separate editions for adults and children.
This ‘crossover’ appeal played a large part in its almost instant success.
The novel won the 2003 Whitbread Book Award for ‘Book of the Year’ and the 2003 Guardian Children’s Fiction Prize.
The novel has now been translated into 44 languages and has sold over 5 million copies worldwide.

1Introduction & Context

1.1Novel & Play

1.1.1Mark Haddon's Novel (2003)

1.1.2Simon Stephens' Adaptions (2012)

1.2Christopher's Autism

1.2.1Christopher's Autism

1.2.2End of Topic Test - Introduction & Context

2Form, Structure & Language

2.1Dramatic Devices

2.1.1Writing About the Text as a Playscript

2.1.2Dramatic Devices

2.2Genre & Structure

2.2.1Genre

2.2.2Structure

2.3Language

2.3.1Language

2.3.2End of Topic Test - Form, Structure & Language

3Text Summary & Analysis

3.1Part One

3.1.1Discovering the Dead Dog & Christopher's Autism

3.1.2The Policeman & Siobhan

3.1.3The Police Station & Ed's Entry

3.1.4Mother's Death & Beginning the Investigation

3.1.5Ed's Frustrations & Revisiting Mrs Alexander

3.1.6Remembering Judy & "Fight" Scene

3.1.7Judy's Letters

3.1.8Ed's Confession

3.1.9End of Topic Test - Part One

3.1.10End of Topic Test - Part One 2

3.2Part Two

3.2.1Preparing to Run Away & Train Station

3.2.2On the Train & Arriving in London

3.2.3On the Tube & Arriving at Judy's House

3.2.4Policeman, Ed Visits & Tensions

3.2.5Back in Swindon & New Beginnings

3.2.6The End & Maths Appendix

3.2.7End of Topic Test - Part Two

3.2.8End of Topic Test - Part Two cont....

4Themes

4.1Themes

4.1.1Independence

4.1.2Parenting

4.1.3Order & Disorder

4.1.4End of Topic Test - Themes

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