boy

							About a Boy – Nick Hornby

 Nick Hornby

    Born in 1957 in Redhill, England
    A trained teacher of English and American
    literature
    A long time Arsenal fan and record collector.
    Has used this in his novels.
About a Boy – Nick Hornby

 Nick Hornby
    Novels:

       Fever Pitch, 1992

       High Fidelity, 1995

       About A Boy, 1998

       How to be Good, 2001

       A Long Way Down, 2005
About a Boy – Nick Hornby

Major characters:
    Marcus
      12 Years old
      Lives with his divorced mother
      Recently moved from Cambridge
      to Holloway in London, a tough
      area
      Not very cool
About a Boy – Nick Hornby

Major characters:

    Will
      In his thirties
      Lives alone
      Does not have a real job (why not?)
      Thinks himself very cool
About a Boy – Nick Hornby

   Irony


     ”Irony is a subtle form of humour
     which involves saying things that
     you do not mean.”
About a Boy – Nick Hornby

   Irony


     ”I really like Mondays.”
About a Boy – Nick Hornby


 First lines of the novel:

   ’Have you split up now?’
      ’Are you being funny?’ (Marcus’ mother
   answers)
      People quite often thought Marcus was
   being funny when he wasn’t. He couldn’t
   understand it.
About a Boy – Nick Hornby
Important themes in the novel

  Bullying
     Bullying is when you treat other people badly because
     they look or behave differently. Why do people bully other
     people? What can be done about it?

  The outsider
     Being an outsider is sometimes a voluntary thing and
     sometimes not. Both Will and Marcus are outsiders. Why?

  Finding role-models
     We all need role-models in life. What role-models do Will
     and Marcus find?
About a Boy – Nick Hornby
Good Internet sites to visit


   www.nickhornby.co.uk


   http://www.contemporarywriters.com/authors
   /?p=auth51&state=#bibliography
About a Boy – Nick Hornby
Assignment:


   In the novel Marcus has a tough life and he is bullied by
   some of his classmates in school. What do you think that
   Marcus’ teachers should do to help him?

   Work in a group of three to four students and write an
   answer to this question of at least 80 words. Post the
   assignment on the forum no later than March 23 at
   12.00.
About a Boy – Nick Hornby




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