A Spot of Bother By Mark Haddon

Mark Haddon wrote The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time, which I enjoyed about an autistic boy. So I thought I would pick up another book of his. This one is about a middle class British family -- the main character is George, who becomes mentally unstable with a fear of dying. He is convinced a spot of eczema is cancer. His wife, Jean, is having an affair with a former co-worker of his. His son, Jamie, is gay and has just lost his lover due to his "selfish" behavior and his daughter, Katie, who is a single mother is about to be married to someone she is not sure she loves and that her family disapproves of.  The story evolves around preparations for the wedding and the family's interactions with each other. Each one comes to find love again as the story closes. While there are some funny moments, nice descriptions and a clever clipped pattern to the story...the book really is never more than a spot of bother about a modern British family that struggles to deal with their feelings.

"His mind was malfunctioning. He had to bring it under control. He had done it before. He had lived with his daughter for 18 years under the same roof without coming to blows, for starters. When his mother died he went back to the office the following morning to make sure the Glasgow deal did not fall through."