A Spot of Bother

A Novel

By: Mark Haddon

Narrated by: Simon Vance

Length: 11 hrs and 42 mins

Publisher's summary

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. “The secret of contentment, George felt, lay in ignoring many things completely.” Some things in life can’t be ignored, however: his tempestuous daughter Katie’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 it’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 George’s wife, Jean, who is carrying on a late-life affair with her husband’s ex-colleague. The Halls do not approve of Ray, for vague reasons summed up by their son Jamie’s observation that Ray has “strangler’s hands.”

Jamie himself has his own problems—his tidy and pleasant life comes apart when he fails to invite his lover, Tony, to Katie’s wedding. And Katie, a woman whose ferocious temper once led to the maiming of a carjacker, can’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—and come together—as a family is the true subject of Haddon’s hilarious and disturbing portrait of a dignified man trying to go insane politely.

A Spot of Bother is Mark Haddon’s unforgettable follow-up to the internationally beloved best seller 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—literally—of family life proves rich comic fodder for Haddon’s crackling prose and bittersweet insights into misdirected love.

©2006 Mark Haddon (P)2006 Random House, Inc. Random House Audio, a division of Random House, Inc.

Critic reviews

"No bother at all, this comic follow-up to Haddon's blockbuster (and nicely selling book of poems) is great fun." (Publishers Weekly)

Fun read!

Very humorous and enjoyable read. Terrific narration. A fun take on family with fireworks at the end. Try it!

Humorous and Honest...

I have never wanted for a hypochondriac to die more than I did with this book. George is my least favorite book-hero of all times. Still loved Jamie, Katie, Jacob and Ray. A great listen and an outstanding performance from the talented Simon Vance.

More please

This is a touching, funny, tender story of a British family's mental journey as they prepare for the daughter's wedding. The characters are rich, brilliantly described. The narrator is amazing. His reading of the young grandson is so spot-on that I laughed almost every time the young boy spoke. The only problem with this book is that it ends (although I thought the ending was perfect).

Wonderful

I laughed, I cried. Laughed more than cried. Rooted for each character, even though they had opposing goals. His first two books are wonderful, this one and the 'Curious Incident...'

Not so heavyweight, but memorable and worthwhile. Even delightfully ironic you might argue, the cosy, matter-of-fact style versus the subject matter. It is easy to picture a masterpiece in Haddon's future.

As witty as Wilde, but the story failed to engage

The writing is brilliant. I reversed several times just so I could listen to a well-turned phrase once more. I laughed out loud several times. Alas, the story just didn't engage me. Vance, once again, does a great job with the narration. And yet, as another reviewer mentioned, perhaps this is better read than listened to, because you want to see the well-constructed sentences more than you want to lose yourself in the story.

A long short-story.

A boring English family has a dad going nuts over his wife's affair. His neurotic behavior paired with some spotty mentions of gay sex will either make you laugh or make you wonder how this book got into your library or both.

Uneven

It took a long time for me to get into this book. The narrator is not the best, but good. His female voices are so falsetto and staged. However, it does work. The story itself is a bit fantastic (some of the situations like George's attempt at self-surgery) but again it does work. If there is nothing else on your shelf to read, choose this one. But there are a lot better reads out there to occupy your time.

Enjoyable

I enjoyed this book and its quirky characters. The story is a slice of life that you are likely to relate to in some way. The characters are worth getting to know.

Wonderful

A delightful foray into the nature of family and love, and whether either is definable or teachable. Like his previous novel, you're left wondering how Mr. Haddon knows these things. Smashing fun.

FAntastic!

What a delight of wonderful story, brilliant language, amazing narration. Not a wasted word or an unfilled moment of narration. When it all comes together like this I kinda want to weep for joy. Thank you!