The author uses very descriptive and specific language to describe the setting, but not emotions. The author’s use of language impacts the reader by adding a sense of the unknown, forcing the reader to make inferences about emotions. The author uses descriptive language to help the reader place themselves into the story. An example of Haddon using descriptive language in the text is when Christopher is talking about a memory of Mother. “... and in the afternoon we were on the beach in a place called Polperro. The mother was wearing a pair of shorts made out of denim and a light blue bikini top and she was smoking cigarettes called Consulate which were mint flavored.” (Haddon 77). Referencing details like the material of the shorts, or the flavor of the cigarettes allows the reader …show more content…
Shears’s house. Its eyes were closed. It looked as if it was running on its side, the way dogs run when they think they are chasing a cat in a dream.” (Haddon 1). These details help the reader understand not only the scene, but also the emotion. Haddon described that scene to give the reader a sense of curiosity and sadness, urging the reader to continue reading to find out who would do such a thing. Although Haddon uses descriptive words to help paint pictures, he doesn’t describe any emotions depicted in the book other than Christopher’s. The first-person setting leaves a lot of emotions to be inferred by the reader since Haddon only focuses on the main character. An example of this would be when Christopher leaves his detective book lying on the kitchen table and Father finds it. “It was 5:54 p.m. when Father came back into the living room. He said ‘What is this?’ but he said it very quietly and I didn’t realize that he was angry because he wasn’t shouting.” (Haddon 81). Even though Christopher isn’t aware that his father is angry, the reader can immediately infer that Father is angry using the previous context of