A Spot of Bother

A Spot of Bother by Mark Haddon is the author's second novel, following The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time. In A Spot of Bother, George Hall is convinced that the eczema on his thigh is cancer and is unable to deal with his daughter's wedding, his wife's affair, and his son's homosexuality. Funny and perceptive, if not uplifting, Haddon's biggest accomplishment is writing something completely different from Curious Incident, and writing it well.

George Hall, having just retired in Peterborough, is out buying a suit at Allders. He spots a lesion on his hip, decides he must have cancer, and even after his doctor tells him it's eczema, he realises there can only be one solution: "He would have to kill himself." He says nothing about it to his wife Jean, herself a little annoyed that George's retirement makes it more difficult to carry on her affair with George's former colleague, David. George and Jean's daughter Katie, meanwhile, has just announced she's getting married to Ray, of whom everyone in the family disapproves ("Katie spoke French. Ray read biographies of sports personalities") - not least Katie's gay brother Jamie, who is having problems of his own. He neglects to invite boyfriend Tony to the upcoming wedding, thinking Tony won't be comfortable, but Tony takes umbrage and walks out.

Ray grows concerned that Katie only loves him for his house and his ability to be a good father to her son Jacob. Katie wonders if he might be right. George starts having terrible panic attacks and, after finding David and Jean in bed together, is driven into complete breakdown. Overwhelmed by a fear of dying, he tries to cut off the lesion with a pair of scissors and nearly bleeds to death.

A Spot of Bother by Mark Haddon is dark, but is written so that it does not require too much concentration, as some literary novels do. With short chapters and a third person viewpoint that moves between all the characters in the Hall family, Haddon keeps the pages turning as readers are drawn deeper into the family's problems.