Last week I had the honor to sit in (via google chat) with Ms. Renee Lucas, her colleagues, and a few students as they held their monthly book club. They were discussing “The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time.” I had remembered reading it a few year’s back and wanting so much to talk about it with another person. It was fascinating to hear what other people thought about this fascinating book. This is such a great opportunity for students and teachers to engage in reading a book for pure enjoyment. Are you looking for something extra-curricular to do in your building?
This book was also adapted for the stage and will be made in to a movie in the next few years.
Summary
The novel is narrated in the first-person perspective by Christopher John Francis Boone, a 15-year-old boy who describes himself as “a mathematician with some behavioral difficulties” living in Swindon, Wiltshire. Although Christopher’s condition is not stated, the book’s blurb refers to Asperger syndrome, high-functioning autism, or savant syndrome. In July 2009, Haddon wrote on his blog that “Curious Incident is not a book about Asperger’s….if anything it’s a novel about difference, about being an outsider, about seeing the world in a surprising and revealing way. The book is not specifically about any specific disorder,” and that he, Haddon, is not an expert on autism spectrum disorder or Asperger syndrome.
The book uses prime numbers to number the chapters, rather than the conventional successive numbers.
Here I am in Chicago, listening to the conversations in Columbus Ohio!
Click on the image above, to see from left to right: Shannon Mulroy, John Tierney, Xafsa Aden, Devin Lambert, Colin Poulson, Myrlanda Pierre, Deqa Ahmed, Allen Sanchez-Salgado, Jesus Salgado-Sanchez ( yes that is on purpose) and me (not pictured).
Next month’s book selection is Neil Gaiman’s “The Graveyard Book.”
