A Spot of Bother

by Mark Haddon

Hardcover, 2006

Call number

FIC HAD

Collection

Publication

Doubleday (2006), Edition: First Edition, 354 pages

Description

Fiction. Literature. Humor (Fiction.) HTML:George Hall is an unobtrusive man. A little distant, perhaps, a little cautious, not quite at ease with the emotional demands of fatherhood or of manly bonhomie. ā??The secret of contentment, George felt, lay in ignoring many things completely.ā? Some things in life canā??t be ignored, however: his tempestuous daughter Katieā??s deeply inappropriate boyfriend Ray, for instance, or the sudden appearance of a red circular rash on his hip. At 57, George is settling down to a comfortable retirement, building a shed in his garden and enjoying the freedom to be alone when he wants. But then he runs into a spot of bother. That red circular rash on his hip: George convinces himself itā??s skin cancer. And the deeply inappropriate Ray? Katie announces he will become her second husband. The planning for these frowned-upon nuptials proves a great inconvenience to Georgeā??s wife, Jean, who is carrying on a late-life affair with her husbandā??s ex-colleague. The Halls do not approve of Ray, for vague reasons summed up by their son Jamieā??s observation that Ray has ā??stranglerā??s hands.ā? Jamie himself has his own problems ā?? his tidy and pleasant life comes apart when he fails to invite his lover, Tony, to Katieā??s wedding. And Katie, a woman whose ferocious temper once led to the maiming of a carjacker, canā??t decide if she loves Ray, or loves the wonderful way he has with her son Jacob. Unnoticed in the uproar, George quietly begins to go mad. The way these damaged people fall apart ā?? and come together ā?? as a family is the true subject of Haddonā??s hilarious and disturbing portrait of a dignified man trying to go insane politely. A Spot of Bother is Mark Haddonā??s unforgettable follow-up to the internationally beloved bestseller The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time. Once again, Haddon proves a master of a story at once hilarious, poignant, dark, and profoundly human. Here the madness ā?? literally ā?? of family life proves rich comic fodder for Haddonā??s… (more)

Media reviews

ā€œA Spot of Botherā€ isnā€™t nearly as audacious, and in other hands and other media, its plot elements wouldnā€™t amount to much, maybe a weepy nighttime soap or a lesser Steve Martin comedy. But Haddon is too gifted and too ambitious to write a hacky second novel. In fact, heā€™s so wondrously
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articulate, so rigorous in thinking through his charactersā€™ mind-sets, that ā€œA Spot of Botherā€ serves as a fine example of why novels exist. Really, does any other art form do nuance so well, or the telling detail or the internal monologue?
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2 more
Just as he flawlessly mastered the voice of a boy with Asperger's in The Curious Incident, here Haddon has filled 390 pages with sharp and witty observations about family and daily life. This a superb novel, and I was shocked when it didn't made the Man Booker longlist. There may be a perfectly
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obvious, simple reason for its omission. After reading it though, I can't think of an explanation that's good enough.
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And that's what's so surprising about A Spot of Bother: how unsurprising it is. It's never less than pleasurable to read and there are good jokes and funny situations; it's just that it never tries to be much more than good jokes or funny situations. It's not that this is a bad book - it isn't.
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It's amusing and brisk and charming. But readers could be forgiven for wanting - and expecting - more.
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User reviews

LibraryThing member fyrefly98
Summary: Recent retiree George Hall is not having a good week. His daughter Katie has announced that she's getting married to a man George thinks is not good enough for her, his son Jamie will be bringing his boyfriend to the wedding, and to top it all off, he's discovered a lesion on his hip that
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he's convinced is cancerous. As George slips further into depression and anxiety, his family begins to go to pieces around him, and there seems to be little chance of stopping the comedy of errors and returning to normal for long enough to hold a wedding - if they can even begin to figure out what normal is.

Review: This book reminded me quite a lot of Jonathan Franzen's The Corrections, if not so much in style, then definitely in tone, dry wit, and subject matter - a "typical" family in crisis while each of the members are undergoing crises of their own. The Corrections was fancier with the language, while this book was more straightforward, and had a less convoluted plot structure. Both manage to portray real people, with real problems, and this book in particular does an excellent job of making its characters both realistic and sympathetic. This is not to say that any of them (except Ray, Katie's fiancƩe) are particularly nice or wonderful people - because real people have flaws and foibles and short tempers and make stupid decisions. This book also takes a potentially very depressing subject matter - depression, anxiety, fear of dying - and makes it subtly funny throughout, without trivializing it and while still treating its characters with compassion. There was only one scene that I felt lost its tone - George attempting self-surgery was I think supposed to be played as a bit of a farce, but for me wound up over the line into disturbing, disgusting, and genuinely hard to listen to, although I've got a pretty weak stomach for that sort of thing. Overall, though, I enjoyed this book - it does a good job of making your own daily crises seem like small potatoes compared to those of the Hill family.

Recommendation: Nothing particularly ground-breaking, and I wouldn't necessarily pick it up just because you like The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, but it's a solid black comedy and enjoyable and easy to read.
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LibraryThing member jayne_charles
This was a long book, but in a lot of ways quite short: short chapters, very short paragraphs, short snappy wit. And itā€™s an easy read ā€“ fairly whizzes by in a whirl of choc ices, nursery rhymes, Valium and sex.

About halfway through I did get a bit confused as the plot became convoluted and at
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one point someone got punched in the face and despite rapid re-reading of earlier sections I could not fully understand why. Around about chapter 56 I began to wonder how many times Jamie needed to state that he had ā€˜f***ed upā€™ before we were deemed to have got the message, and some of the touchy-feely stuff got dangerously toe-curling. It reminded me of a cake that comes out of the oven to all intents and purposes perfectly risen, itā€™s only when you slice it and the middle is a bit gooey that you think, actually itā€™s not perfect after all.

Itā€™s an enjoyable read overall though, and it keeps the laughs coming thick and fast. Only when the mental breakdown storyline cranks up does it start feeling slightly darker (and inappropriate to be laughing). There is serious stuff amongst the wit, but it is the wit that I will remember.
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LibraryThing member psiloiordinary
Yes he of "The curious incident of the dog in the night-time" fame - which I thought was wonderful by the way and which by the other way is the only reason I bought this book.

If that is the only reason you are going to read this book then don't bother. Let me explain, this isn't a bad book but it
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is a very different book from the "Night-time Dog" one. So to start with you are going to be disappointed in that respect.

This is in fact a cross between "A bit of a do", "Our friends in the north", "One flew over the cuckoos nest" and any soap opera I imagine showing (but must admit not to watch any of them - this opinion judged from the odd tv trailer and conversations in the office) on the TV at the moment.(take a deep breath)

Lets be fair; Yes it is funny, O.K. it has lots of short chapters which give the illusion of it being a page turner (same technique as Da Vinci Code? i.e. get them turning lots of pages and they will think it is a page turner) and yes, it is well written in a very easy to read and engagingly style. Ultimately its disappointing because it is neither the "Night-Time dog" nor as good as it. Yes they are both unfair expectations on my part, but there you go. What are you going to do?

Ultimately a lightweight, funny, engaging but forgettable tale.

2.5 stars out of 5 - mainly because this is not my cup of tea.
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LibraryThing member ehines
Haddon's last book was narrated by an autistic boy. This book deals with an at-first-flush normal family. Then we begin to appreciate the turmoil beneath the surface and our ill-equipped efforts to cope. I wonder if the fundamental observation that prompted this book was that the autistic narrator
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of his first book was different only in degree from the rest of us near-emotional-illiterates as we blunder about trying to figure out how other people think and feel, and how we ourselves think and feel, trying to figure out what to attend to and what to ignore and getting it all wrong a fair half the time.

This sounds grim, but Haddon is a very good comic writer whose unflinching yet kind-hearted treatment of his characters reminds me, strangely enough, of John Kennedy Toole.
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LibraryThing member callington
I love Mark Haddon's clear style of writing. also really liked the sometimes very short chapters. It felt a bit like a child observing. I thought the descriptions of panic, and the anxiety disorder in George was excellent. The way he talks about the floor sliding away almost gave me vertigo.

I
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think this makes me sound like a horrible person, but I didn't really like any of the characters though - with the exception of Ray (and maybe Jacob). Everyone else seemed incredibly self centred. I imagine Kate as having a 'face you wouldn't get tired of punching' as they say up my way. What a horror! Jamie tried to redeem himself late in the book, but I just don't feel much sympathy for grown ups who behave like childrenā€¦ as if they have a 'right' to be happy and indulge themselves.

Great book though, and great choiceā€¦. you can tell it exercised me!
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LibraryThing member ctoll
Haddon has a gift for character and tells a story of average people in a compelling way. I identified with every character at some point. The book made me think about the nature of love and who we choose in life.
LibraryThing member cotto
Having read and enjoyed The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, I decided to check out Haddonā€™s latest offering. It is interesting that both his latest books tackle mental illnesses, first autism and now depression. Iā€™m guessing he probably has had experience with both, whether
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personally or not. However, neither book is depressing which is a good thing in some respects as these topics donā€™t always have to carry with it all gloom and doom. On the other hand, I canā€™t say that his portrayal of depression, in particular, was very realistic at all times. Especially in the ending of A Spot of Bother, Haddon seems downright flippant about the protagonistā€™s condition which I thought a) made for a less than satisfactory ending b) could be taken to offence.



Haddon has a similar style to David Sedaris. They both have a humorous take on the screwed up lives of different families. Haddonā€™s writing also has a bit of likeness to Helen Fielding (Bridget Jones), probably because both use Brit humor. But I suppose Bridget Jones is all about messed up relationships as well. So I think if you like Sedaris/Fielding, you would also enjoy a bit of Haddon. It's a good quick read. I've had to speed read through it in anticipation of getting Harry Potter soon!
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LibraryThing member otterlake
This is a book revolving around two very serious mental illnesses--anxiety and depression so you'd expect it to be well depressing. Instead, I found myself laughing out loud. Haddon draws his characters very sensitively.
LibraryThing member aubreyfs
Stressful and funny. The plot: While Jean has been having an affair with David, and Katie is having cold feet, and Jamie is trying desperately to get Tony back, the wedding is being planned, and George is losing his mind quite properly. The book focuses on one family and all the separate but
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connected issues they are dealing with in their personal lives. Haddon does such a good job of making his characters real and quirky and interesting. Each chapter is throughtfully told from a different family member's point of view, sometimes overlapping. Themes of marriage, paying attention, generosity, taking care of oneself, taking care of others.
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LibraryThing member mooknits
Not a book that I really enjoyed. I found it hard work and quite depressing. There were humours moments but that didn't make up for the rest of the book. I won't read any more of his based on this one.
LibraryThing member goldiebear
This book was enjoyable, but not terribly exciting. It wasn't a great follow-up after The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time which I loved so much. The character development was pretty great at least. I really liked how each little "sub-chapter" was told by a different family member. The
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book was a long, so the way it was broken up was nice for me. All the British sland and termonolgy was quite fun, though.
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LibraryThing member jennyo
George Hall is feeling a little stressed. His wife's having an affair, his daughter's about to marry someone the family feels isn't good enough for her, and his son is likely to bring his boyfriend to the wedding (a situation with which George is less than comfortable). Oh, and he just may have
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cancer.

As I read A Spot of Bother, I couldn't help comparing it to Jonathan Franzen's The Corrections, a book I loathed with every fiber of my being. I hated Franzen's characters. I only kept reading the book because I thought there'd be some catharsis, some sort of redemption, at the end. There wasn't.

The Hall family is just as dysfunctional as the one in The Corrections. The characters do stupid, stubborn, selfish things. But I cared about them anyway. I wanted them to be okay. I wanted things to work out for them. I felt like they were just messed up people who were, at their core, good. I needed to know what happened to them.

There's not exactly a happily-ever-after ending to this book. But it's a plausible one. And when I closed the cover, I was satisfied, glad I'd been able to spend time getting to know these people.

Kudos to Mr. Haddon for writing one of the best dark comedies I've ever read. I look forward to his next book.
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LibraryThing member brianinbuffalo
Not nearly as impressive as Haddon's earlier "Curious Incident of the Dog..." Nevertheless, "A Spot of Bother" introduces some memorable characters who help us to better understand the minefields that families confront when illness, infidelity and rebellion strain relationships. Many humorous
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moments, and a few truly hilarious scenarios.
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LibraryThing member rayski
A zany entertaining story about a somewhat detached family that comes together through the fatherā€™s obsession with eczema that heā€™s certain is terminal cancer.
LibraryThing member rahv7
after reading "the curious incident ..." i was pretty disappointed in the book. i can't really put my finger on why i didn't like it. it is well written and sometimes it's pretty funny. but most of the time it felt like watching an episode of "six feet under", except that i never really cared about
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the characters in the book.
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LibraryThing member jjoliver
Haddon provides amusing insight into a retired man's breakdown. Compellingly illustrating distorted logic and its consequences in your average, middle class, dysfunctional English family.
LibraryThing member tezz
An easily readable book, aimed more, perhaps, at a slightly older audience. Characters are fully believeable as are their sometimes trying situations. Worth a read.
LibraryThing member JustAGirl
Absolutely brilliant and confirms the promise of genius from A Curious Incident... Haddon creates lovable, utterly mixed-up, wryly amusing, real people better than almost anyone and has the incredible ability of making you care about all of them.
LibraryThing member kaelirenee
George is the stereotype of a British man-stiff upper lip, not wanting to be a bother, keeping feelings to himself. He's a father, a husband, and he's going crazy. He tries to self-medicate and to deal with issues no his own while helping plan for his daughter's wedding and cope with a gay son.
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Needless to say, this doesn't work.

Each chapter in this book is told from a character's point of view, so the reader often gets multiple views of the same event and sees the constant development of characters. Haddon seems much better suited to write the abnormal mind instead of the normal mind, though I prefered his portrayal of an autistic boy over a depressed man. Also-this book is VERY British-the slang, the references, everything about it, so it takes a little while to think about things in the same world-view as the characters.

All in all, this is an entertaining showing of how a family is torn apart and slowly tries to find it's way again.
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LibraryThing member pwagner
Not as good as Curious incident but another worth while read.
LibraryThing member dchaikin
Despite dark undertones, this is a pleasant, funny, light read with a "Four-Weddings and a Funeral" flow of sorts; and it's absolutely nothing like his earlier book, A Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. Haddon has a sense of human psychology that is quite interesting. Here the
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perception of a nervous breakdown really makes us question our own comprehension and misunderstanding of reality. But, while I would highly recommend Curious Incident to anyone, I would not recommend this one. It's too light, and I suspect, quickly forgotten.
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LibraryThing member lindaholland
Well written. Believable, sympathetic characters and amusing situations. But too stressy for me - by the end I was feeling as frazzled as they were.
LibraryThing member dgoo
If you like black humor and are Nick Hornsby fan you'll probably like this too.
LibraryThing member BCCJillster
Very good read about a man spinning out of control when he fears he has cancer. Haddon is excellent at writing from various viewpoints of the family members, including a gay son and a daughter who are both struggling with relationships. Wry humor, characters to care about. Reminiscent of Joe
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Coomer's Apologizing to Dogs in tone (if you haven't read that, get it).
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LibraryThing member Cygnus555
After reading dog in the nighttime... I couldn't wait for his next one... and I was not disappointed. I love the way Mark writes. He has a way with flawed characters. Where so many authors can fail, Mark succeeds in making me care about the characters in his stories. What's next?

Awards

Costa Book Awards (Shortlist — Novel — 2006)
Bad Sex in Fiction Award (Shortlist — 2006)

Pages

354

ISBN

0385520514 / 9780385520515
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