balfies's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
informative
inspiring
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Last read this in 2015 - god it's good. The depth of it is so impressive, it's such a tight, well-paced read with exceptional characterisation. Wanted to reread something kind of familiar but also tick off a book from the Year 12 syllabus to refamiliarise myself before I'm in classrooms again next year.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Vomit, Violence, Child abuse, Animal death, and Ableism
trintrin's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
omg I’m actually teary after finishing this book. It’s both heartbreaking and heartwarming at the same time. Christopher was such a delight to follow, I loved reading all his little theories and observations, especially in the first half. But the second half, oh man
The only thing that bothered me a little is that this stopped being a murder mystery pretty early on, but that’s got to do with the way this book is marketed ig
Spoiler
I never expected this to get so sad. That scene of him reading all those letters from his mother broke my heart. And the entire London tube scenes shittttt I can’t fully formulate an opinion on his parents but I hope their family finds a way to heal and cope. And that Christopher truly fulfils his dreams and lives happily ever after.The only thing that bothered me a little is that this stopped being a murder mystery pretty early on, but that’s got to do with the way this book is marketed ig
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Death of parent, Alcohol, Child abuse, Infidelity, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Cursing, Vomit, Blood, and Excrement
elzmri's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Ableism, Animal death, and Infidelity
Minor: Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Domestic abuse, and Vomit
henriediosa's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
I'm neurodivergent. I really wanted this book to be good, but it ended up disappointing me. It's a shame because I like Christopher's character traits. He is an interesting character. But I wish he had different parents. I wish he had a different author.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gaslighting, Child abuse, and Ableism
Moderate: Alcoholism
Minor: Vomit
productioneer's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing
Moderate: Animal death and Infidelity
Minor: Vomit
lana_reads98's review against another edition
adventurous
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Mental illness, Infidelity, Alcohol, Animal death, Vomit, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Death of parent, Police brutality, and Physical abuse
avaafran's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Infidelity, Alcohol, Vomit, Child abuse, Ableism, Animal death, and Animal cruelty
rieriereads's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
𝘐 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘨𝘴. 𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘭𝘸𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘢 𝘥𝘰𝘨 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘐𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘮𝘰𝘰𝘥𝘴. 𝘏𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘺, 𝘴𝘢𝘥, 𝘤𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘈𝘭𝘴𝘰, 𝘥𝘰𝘨𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘧𝘢𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘥𝘰 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘬.
𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝙲𝚞𝚛𝚒𝚘𝚞𝚜 𝙸𝚗𝚌𝚒𝚍𝚎𝚗𝚝 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙳𝚘𝚐 𝚒𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙽𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝-𝚝𝚒𝚖𝚎 was a quirky, fun, emotional, and overall good read. The book starts off with 15-year-old Christopher, who has autism, finding out that the neighborhood dog, Wellington, was killed.
Listening to the audiobook, it felt like the book was divided into two parts: a murder mystery and an emotional story of growth and family. Two distinct opposites that some may see as okay and others may disagree with. I'm in the middle.
In the first part, as Christopher acts like a detective, we can see that he sees things and people differently. He understands things differently and notices details not many would even give a thought to. And I love how, while listening to the audiobook version, it feels like I am by his side.
Most of the characters were likable, and I definitely loved how Ed's, Christopher's father's, feelings and frustration were shown. Though I may not agree with some things he has done, his emotions were raw and honest.
Aside from Christopher's perspective and how he sees and understands the world, I also loved the way his parents say I love you to him. The gesture was sweet; it was my favorite detail of the novel. I also really liked the prime-numbered chapters, and it was a novel within a novel.
Unfortunately, even though the book was narrated beautifully, I found some parts tedious to listen to. A part of me wanted something else to happen since the plot for me was predictable. Overall, it was still a good book. I wouldn't probably read it again, but I would still maybe recommend it to those willing to try it.
•••
My Rating System
5 🌟 - Life changing, a new favorite read
4 ⭐ - I loved it
3 ⭐ - I liked it
2 ⭐ - It was okay
1 ⭐ - I hated it but decided to not dnf
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Cursing, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Child abuse
Minor: Vomit
beeping_librarian's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
This book made me very sad.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal death, Excrement, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, and Vomit
mermaidstears's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
funny
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
it was nice to read a book with an autistic main character and attempting to understand how they work and perceive the world. It was a good book with interesting views.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Infidelity, Excrement, Animal death, Death of parent, Murder, Vomit, and Violence