I really enjoyed this book: I found it fascinating and very absorbing. It is a book about an autistic 15-year-old called Christopher, who has a photographic memory and knows the capitals in every country in the world. The story starts with Christopher finding his next-door neighbour's dog stabbed with a fork. Christopher spends the rest of the book trying to find out who did it, during which his life unfolds with loads of interesting twists. It is written in the first person, which is one of the things I like about the book: it is very informal and easy to follow. I think Mark Haddon was quite brave to write this, because if the book had been written badly it could have been seen as very offensive by quite a lot of people.

Another thing I like about this book is that the character is so honest, like when he's explaining that he doesn't understand jokes, it makes him a really likeable character that you immediately warm to.

One criticism I have about the book is that I didn't like the amount of time the characters swore: it seemed really unnecessary and it got on my nerves. I think this book is aimed for a very wide range of people, and different ages will appreciate it for different reasons. Adults will probably appreciate the way it is written rather than the actual story, and kids are more likely to enjoy the actual plot.

Overall I think this is a very original, refreshing book. Christopher is such an interesting character I found it very hard to put the book down; it is definitely worth reading!

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