Haddon's second novel A Spot of Bother was published in 2006 and shortlisted for the 2006 Costa Novel Award.British Council: Literature – Mark Haddon, biography accessed 12 March 2021. It deals with events in the life of a 57-year-old early retired man who finds a lesion on his hip, and despite reassurance from his doctor, transforms the spot into a malignant skin cancer, and what happens as he tries remain sane; "the novel moves in and out of the lives and minds of George’s wife, son, and daughter". The plot describes the "messy ordinariness of our lives, lives that revolve not around epic quests of historical significance, but marriages and divorces, love and sex, births and deaths".British Council: Literature – Mark Haddon, Critical perspective accessed 12 March 2021. The book was translated into French in 2007 by Odile Demange as Une situation légèrement délicate (A slightly delicate position).BnF Catalogue general – Notice bibliographique 'Une situation légèrement délicate' accessed 12 March 2021.
