"Leaving Home" by Mark Haddon

Like many I knew of Mark Haddon because of his book "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time". It was one of the first English language books I picked out myself and was able to read (leave me alone, graded readers telling tales of animals going on adventures!). My English teacher ridiculed my book choice and told me I pronounced 'appendix' wrong, but fortunately wasn't able to kill my excitement for reading despite her best efforts. The author came back on my radar when I saw an article about him dealing with Long Covid. His upcoming book would be a memoir, this one, so I've eagerly awaited it. I loved reading it, but if you've been waiting and hoping for a memoir that would be at least partially about Long Covid, this one isn't it. It's only talked about for a few pages. In here Haddon shares his experiences with writing and creating art, but it's also mostly about growing up with abusive parents, dealing with mental health struggles and creating a sense of connection with…