[The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time] ... before the book

I am not sure where I picked up this book -- a copy from Mom or perhaps something taken home from a book exchange then promptly forgotten. Either way, this book has been in my possession for some time and my motivation to read it is actually (should I feel guilty for this?) because I'm trying to clear off my bookshelves and this one fulfills one of the requirements for my Goodreads reading challenge ("Read a book by an author you've never read before"). Here goes...