The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time: Chapter 67 Summary & Analysis

The next day, Ed is watching a soccer match on television, so Christopher decides to ask his neighbors whether they know anything about Wellington’s death. He doesn’t usually talk to strangers. This isn’t because he’s afraid of them—he can hit hard and always carries his Swiss Army Knife—but because he has trouble understanding people he doesn’t know. When there are new staff members at school, he observes them for weeks before he’ll talk to them, and then finds out everything he can about them.

Christopher feels brave for talking to his neighbors. He makes a map of the street, then knocks on the Thompsons’ door and asks the man who answers if he knows who killed Wellington. The man, Mr. Thompson’s brother, is impolite and doesn’t even know that the dog has been killed. He wasn’t in town the night of the murder, so Christopher leaves.

Next, Christopher talks to a black woman who’s nicer to him, but who didn’t see anything suspicious the night of the murder. Christopher asks whether she can think of anyone who doesn’t like Mrs. Shears, and she suggests he talk to his father—and tells him to be careful.

Christopher then goes to Mr. Wise’s house. Mr. Wise laughs at him, so Christopher leaves. He avoids the house next to his own because the people who live there do drugs and play loud music.

He sees another neighbor, the elderly Mrs. Alexander, working in her yard. He asks her about Wellington’s death, and though she doesn’t know who the culprit is, she tries to engage him in friendly conversation. Christopher makes an attempt to chat even though he’s not very good at it. Mrs. Alexander invites him in for tea, and when he doesn’t want to come in, offers to bring out cake and orange squash, a drink. It ends up that the cake has yellow on it, which Christopher doesn’t like, so she says she’ll bring cookies instead. However, when she’s in the house for a while Christopher begins to think she might be calling the police, and he leaves.

Christopher decides that, due to the fact that most murders are committed by someone the victim knows, his prime suspect should be Mr. Shears, since he’s the only person Christopher knows of who doesn’t like Mrs. Shears. Mr. Shears left his wife two years earlier, which was why Mrs. Shears came to help out after Christopher’s mother died. Sometimes Mrs. Shears would stay overnight. Christopher doesn’t know why Mr. Shears left, but he figures it must be because one of them had an affair or they argued.