Recent readings - Curious Incident, Beat the Reaper

Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon (2003) We follow Christopher a seemingly 15 year-old autistic boy (it's never actually mentioned in the novel if he's autistic or not). He discovers the dead body of a dog and he wants to investigate how this happened. His parents are divorced and he's a maths genius. The story in itself is not that fascinating; it's how this boy handles and lives through it that is genius. The story is pretty much told through his point of view and it makes us see the world differently in ways we are not accustomed to.

Beat the Reaper by Josh Bazell (2009) Randomly bought at Kyobo bookstore in Seoul and read it in 2 days! Fast-paced, vulgar, filled with crazy situations and unforgettable quotes. It's basically about Peter Brown, a doctor and ex-mafia hitman. He's telling us in flashbacks about his past life while in the present he's working on 48 hours shift as a doctor (on drugs to stay awake!). It's like reading a Tarantino script. Apparently if you like the tv show House you would love this book - but I haven't seen this show so I'm just quoting critics for this one! Quotes that I have to share: 1) p.110: Calling a tongue piercing "cosmetic" is a bit of a stretch, since you don't get one because it makes you look better. You get one because you're so desperate for affection that you're willing to gruesomely harm yourself to advertise how well you suck dick. 2)p.189: [During a hitman mission with a first-timer] [...] I started to feel a bit embarrassed. Like I had some office job that sounded glamorous but really wasn't, and now my kid had come to visit and I had to show him how Daddy waits all day and night in the mud and then sneaks into people's houses to shoot them in the head.