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By
Jon Surtees
Mark
Haddon's Whitbread award winning novel, 'The Curious Incident of
the Dog in the Night-Time' is a breathtaking book that is worth
every one of the plaudits vested upon it. Bearing that fact in mind
it was unsurprising to find the Oxford Union completely sold out
for the final talk of this year's Literary Festival.
Interviewed
by Professor John Carey, Haddon came across as a very humble and
likeable man, slightly taken aback at the critical storm his book
has caused. Both the audience and Carey were gushing in their praise
and Haddon appeared slightly unsure of how to react to it all, especially
in such a public moment for an obviously private man.
When
he was allowed to talk about his work however, he was very engaging.
Hearing him discuss how he created the voice for the lead character
in the novel, the 15 year old Aspergers suffering, Christopher was
fascinating. To hear how he created such a memorable and 'disabled'
character out of 'regular' peoples foibles was very revealing.
The
discussion about Haddon's illustrating career was also very insightful.
He has been illustrating and painting for at least as long as he
has been writing and one of his favourite 'displacement hobbies'
is drawing on the Paint Box program that comes free with every home
computer. He was also sure to mention that a number of his paintings
are currently on display at the framing shop in the Covered Market.
The
overriding impression of Mark Haddon gained from this talk was one
of complete normality. It is very reassuring to see someone who
has created such a great work of art as 'The Curious Incident聟'
come across as such. It fills other 'normal' writers with the hope
that they may create something similar one day.
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