Mostly Murders

A great insight into the mind of Christopher Boone, a fifteen year old boy living with his father and attending a special needs schools.

The first chapter of this books is labelled 2. The second chapter is 3. The third chapter is 5. Why? Because Christopher likes prime numbers. This is just one of many examples of the ways Christopher’s actions may seem nonsensical if taken out of context, and just one of many examples of the fact that most behaviours are in fact logical and comprehensible if we only take the time to try to understand the thoughts and feelings behind the actions.

Christopher is a fan of Sherlock Holmes and labels the book a murder mystery, but although the murder of the neighbour’s dog is what prompts him to begin writing, the mystery itself is a rather small part of the book. The murderer is revealed about halfway through, and though it does lead to another mystery concerning Christopher’s family, there is very little sleuthing in the book.

The much larger, and far more important part of this book, is the insight into Christopher’s mind, and the understanding the reader can gain from this. Christopher’s world is different from the world of so-called “normal” people. Complex math equations are easy, reading human emotions from facial expressions is difficult. Too many sights, sounds and unknown people are torturous. Knowing this, one can begin to appreciate that Christopher isn’t “crazy” or “weird”. It would, in fact, be crazy to expect Christopher to always act in a “normal” way, given that he constantly struggles with sensory overload and treading the precarious minefield of conversation with people who freely use metaphors and flowery language and sayings instead of just plainly stating facts.

As a big mystery lover, I recommend this book not for the mystery which is really very minor, but because I believe that reading books that make the reader think about and understand people who are “different” is a good thing. Don’t go into this expecting a complex murder mystery as you will probably be disappointed, but do pick up this book if you want insight into a different way of thinking and seeing the world.

Contemporary – Young Adult