The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon Book Review

“The nature of impending fatherhood is that you are doing something that you’re unqualified to do, and then you become qualified while doing it.”-John Green. Well, in the story The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Ed knows exactly how it feels. In this story Ed has to make a choice on how he is going to tell Christopher some hard-hitting news. In The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon, Ed is a single father to his autistic son named Christopher. When an incident happens in their quiet neighborhood, it brings up more dirty secrets than the family seems to let on. Ed is a patient, understanding, and caring and with these traits it makes Ed the best parent for Christopher. 

In the book, The Curious Incident Of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon, the father, Ed, has much more patience than any other character in the book and therefore helps him in being the better fit parent for Christopher. Patience is when you can wait kindly and care for somebody. When you can accept somebody for not being on time or delaying something without getting angry or upset.  In the part of the story when Christopher finds the letters and he reads them, he reads the letter on why his mom left and she gives off reasons why the dad was better for him. “And I remember looking at the two of you and seeing you together and thinking how you were really different with him. Much calmer. And you didn’t shout at one another…. And I think that was when I realized you and your father were probably better off if I wasn’t living in the house.” (Haddon 107). This quote is an excellent demonstration of how the dad has good patience because it shows how Chris acts so much differently around his dad because he knows he can trust him and he knows that his dad will always be there for him. You can see how their relationship took time to build, but the dad built it by being patient with his son because he knows it is harder for him. The mom wants to be there for Chris, but she can’t because she doesn’t have the patience to deal with him. Whereas the dad cares so much about Chris and wants to be in his life so badly that he has built up the patience to wait for him. This just shows the reader that the dad cares so much for his son he is willing to be ever so patient with his son just so he can have a good relationship with him. So all in all Ed is the better fit parent for Christopher because of his amount of patience he has to care for him. 

In the book, The Curious Incident Of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon, the father, Ed, is so much more understanding towards Christopher and he understands that Christopher is different from most kids. Understanding is when you allow yourself to be in someone’s shoes and see what they are going through from their perspective. It is the ability to comprehend something through yourself. When Christopher had hit the police officer because he was approaching him and touching him, he got brought down to the station. When his dad gets there, he knows that Christopher does not like to be touched and does not hug, so his dad put his fingers out in a fan form to show Christopher he loves him. “He held up his right hand and spread his fingers out in a fan. I held up my left hand and spread my fingers out in a fan and we made our fingers and thumbs touch each other. We do this because sometimes father wants to give me a hug, but I do not like hugging people so we do this instead, and it means that he loves me.” (Haddon 16). This is a good quote to support the idea of Ed being understanding because you get to see how he knows that Christopher doesn’t like to be touched and it shows how they have made modifications to show how they love each other. When Ed is understanding towards Christopher, it helps him develop a relationship with Chris in a deeper way that no matter how many times they fight, they will always come back to each other because they seem to be the only ones that understand each other. Ed had always done what he thought was best for Chris, not himself. He always went out of his way to make sure Chris knew that he understood that he was not like most kids and he didn’t like all the same things as him. He made alternative ways for them. So it all summed up, Ed is better for Christopher because he has spent more time with him and has a better understanding of what Christopher likes and what he doesn’t. 

In the book, The Curious Incident Of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon, the father, Ed, cares so unconditionally for Christopher that no other character even comes close to what he cares for his son. Caring is displaying affection to someone. It is the ability to care and show your love for someone. When Christopher ran away to his mother, it broke Ed. Ed went to go find Christopher and explain to him everything. He was crying and begging Chris to come home with him. When the mom came in and took Ed out, Ed expressed how he felt towards Chris and the mom trying to keep him. “And Father shouted, “I cooked his meals. I cleaned his clothes. I looked after him every weekend. I looked after him when he was ill. I took him to the doctor. I worried myself sick every time he wandered off somewhere at night. I went to the school every time he got into a fight. And you? You wrote him some fucking letters.”” (Haddon 196-197). This quote shows how much Chris really means to Ed. At some points it seems like Ed is not the biggest fan of being Christophers dad, but at this moment we get to see that he cares for Chris more than anything. Ed has cared for Chris his entire life because the mom couldn’t grow up and learn to accept her child. For that Ed spent so much time with Chris and he developed a caring for Chris that no one could stop or replace. In conclusion, Ed cares unconditionally for Chris no matter what he does. Ed would do anything for his son because he cares too deeply for his child.

Ed is a patient, understanding, and caring and with these traits it makes Ed the best parent for Christopher. Ed has always been the most patient with Christopher. Although, he doesn’t completely understand why Chris is the way he is, he tries his hardest to always try to understand. He can’t relate to what Chris goes through and he understands that he is not like most kids and he is okay with that. Ed makes modifications to normal everyday things for some people to show Chris that he loves him. He cares so much for Chris and always wants to keep him safe. Ed is a much deeper character than what the author seems to let on. Ed shows us and represents someone who will always be there for us and always stand by us no matter what we are going through. He represents a caring and loving person who everyone deserves in their life. The outcome of Ed having these traits is that he will always be what is best for Christopher.