ABOUT A BOY

:''This article is about the novel. For the film, see About a Boy (film); for the film's soundtrack album by Badly Drawn Boy, see About a Boy (soundtrack).''
'''About a boy''' is a 1998 novel by British writer Nick Hornby. It was adapted into a film in 2002.

Contents

Plot introduction

Characters

Film, TV or theatrical adaptations

References

External links

Plot introduction

The novel was widely acclaimed for accurately rendering the thoughts and feelings of twelve year-old Marcus, who feels displaced and lonely in several ways. It is also the moving story of Will Freeman, an emotionally undeveloped man in his 30s coming to find meaning in his life, despite having never held a job and living off the sizable residuals of his father's one song, a one hit wonder about Santa Claus. The title is inspired by the Nirvana song, About a Girl. The book also makes many references to the band. Most of the action in the novel is set in Islington, and in particular the Clerkenwell area.

Characters

'Marcus Brewer': a twelve year-old boy grown in a single family and alienated in his school environment.
'Will Freeman': a thirty-six-year-old bachelor initially looking for an easy relationship without the possibility of commitment. In the original draft, the character's name was "Will Lightman," but it was changed after the protestations of an actual Londoner of the same name.^[1]
'Ellie McCrae':, a 15 year-old girl from Marcus' school with a bad reputation. At first she makes fun of him but later Marcus can team up with her and her friend Zoe. In the weeks that follow, Marcus at first wants her to be his girlfriend, but at the end of he has realized that being good friends is a much better option.
'Fiona': Marcus' mother, a music therapist. Separated from Marcus' father, she has a succession of boyfriends, but none of these relationships (or rather flings) proves satisfactory. Fiona is rather dictatorial when it comes to deciding what is good for her and her son and what is not, which only increases their distance from, and incompatibility with, others. She is a passionate individualist, and teaches Marcus that he should try to be different from the rest. She suffers from depression, something Marcus feels completely helpless about.

Film, TV or theatrical adaptations

A film adaptation of the same name was filmed in 2002 by Chris and Paul Weitz. It starred Nicholas Hoult as Marcus, Hugh Grant as Will, and Toni Collette as Fiona. While the screenplay closely follows Hornby's novel, it omits scenes involving drug use and has a different ending. The entire score to the movie, including several full songs and numerous incidental pieces, was composed by British indie songwriter Badly Drawn Boy.

References

1. Why I don't want to be the hero of a Nick Hornby novel ... Article in ''The Independent'', Mar 8, 1998 by Vanessa Thorpe

External links

★ Too Cool for Words: ''The New York Times'' review by Hal Espen

★ Interview with Nick Hornby on ''About a Boy'' by ABC Arts Online