I like stories on dysfunctional families. Every family is
dysfunctional in one small way or another. Mark Haddon takes this a
little further without being exaggerated. Giving personal accounts
from the viewpoint of the four members of the family - George,
Jean, Katie and Jamie - Haddon paints a disturbing yet powerful
picture on a man's slow descend to madness. I panned the book from
the beginning (as what could possibly top "The Curious Incident of
the Dog in the Night-time"?), especially finding it hard to get
into the first few chapters. But look beyond it, and what a read!
Using George's discovery of a lesion on his hip and Katie's
announcement of her marriage as the setting, little secrets and
issues each characters faces unravels. Haddon reveals each piece of
information bit by bit, keeping the suspense to find out more on
the plot, which is surprisingly hilarious, witty,
thought-provoking, and perturbing.. First, an autistic child, then
a demented elder, what's next?