Novel Review : About a boy by Nick Hornby

About a Boy

Title : About a boy

Author : Nick Hornby

Pages : 278

First published : 1998

Genre : Adult fiction, contemporary, humor.

About the author : Nick Hornby is born on the 17^th of April, 1957 in Redhill,Surrey,England. He is an English novelist and essayist. Nick Hornby is best known for the novel about A boy and High Fidelity. Nick Hornby taught English and he worked as a journalist before he began to write books. In 1998, he divorced from his wife Virginia Bovell. Nick Hornby lives in Maidenhead, England.

Characters :  

• Main characters

Marcus Brewer : Marcus is a teenager. His mom and dad are divorced and his mom is depressed. Marcus dresses weirdly and also his hair is also weird. He sings out loud and he does not notice. That is why Marcus is being bullied.

Will Freeman : will is a single adult and the opposite of Marcus. he is scare of having a family and feel like don’t want to have his own family. He is also had no job, all of the money he have is come from his father’s (already dead)  money and he also does not care about people.

• Minor Characters

Fiona : she is the mother of Marcus who is depressed and sometimes tries to suicide but fails.

Suzie : Fiona’s friend

Ellie : Marcus’s new friend in his new school.

            Rachel : Will fall in love with this single parent who have a son named Alistair.

Plot/Summary :

• Will  joins SPAT (single parent alone together) and pretend to have a kid when he meets Marcus's mother (Fiona) who just move to London with his son, Marcus, 12 years old boy after divorce.

•    Marcus get bullied by some of his friends in his new school, beside of that he is also worries about his mother who is suffers from depression.

•  One day, Suzie ( Fiona's friend), will,  and Marcus find Fiona unconscious in her flat because of overdose after they get back from picnic and they take her to hospital so Marcus have to live in Suzie's house for few days.

•  As times goes by, Marcus and will is more closer and they used to spend time together, until someday Marcus find out that will have no children and Fiona also know about that.

• In the Christmas will is invited to celebrate Christmas with Marcus and Fiona.
• Marcus trying to make will fall in love with his mother but in other hand will fall in love with a single mother named Rachel, and will pretend that he has a kid, until one day Rachel know about that but doesn’t really mind it.
• In the end of the story, will realizes that he likes being part of inter-connected people. He settles into a life with Rachel and Ali ( Rachel’s son) and still see Marcus regularly, will become mature enough to face his insecurities ( having family ), Marcus grows enough to stop letting his mother’s weirdness and Fiona at least stop crying every minute and have a reason to still alive.

Personal Evaluation:

I enjoy reading this book because it is not only talk about love but it is also talk about the meaning of life, beside that this book also talk about bullying and depression. This is the first book I read about Nick Hornby, I recommended you to read this book if you looking for something casual, easy reading and has sense of humor.

- Betty Adii (16202249001) -