About a Boy

By: Nick Hornby

Narrated by: David Case

Now a major motion picture from Universal Pictures.

Will Freeman may have discovered the key to dating success: If the simple fact that they were single mothers meant that gorgeous women—women who would not ordinarily look twice at Will—might not only be willing, but enthusiastic about dating him, then he was really onto something. Single mothers—bright, attractive, available women—thousands of them, were all over London. He just had to find them.

SPAT: Single Parents—Alone Together. It was a brilliant plan. And Will wasn't going to let the fact that he didn't have a child himself hold him back. A fictional two-year-old named Ned wouldn't be the first thing he'd invented. And it seems to go quite well at first, until he meets an actual twelve-year-old named Marcus, who is more than Will bargained for...

Critic reviews

"A follow up to High Fidelity...About a Boy is an acerbic, emotionally richer yet no less funny tale...shrewdly hilarious." Entertainment Weekly

"Hornby is a writer who dares to be witty, intelligent and emotionally generous all at once. He combines a skilled, intuitive appreciation for the rigors of comic structure with highly original insights about the way the enchantments of popular culture insinuate themselves into middle-class notions of romance." The New York Times Book Review

"The conversations between Will and Marcus are hilariously loopy." The Boston Globe

"An amusing male-bonding theme...stylish, well-observed" People

"Writing with real 'soul.'" Harper's Bazaar

"An utterly charming, picaresque tale of an older guy, a young kid, and the funky, dysfunctional real-life ties that bind and unbind." Vogue

Hornsby is a master of character development

I was unfamiliar with the author and had my doubts at first but came away a fan. I look forward to more books by this author.

Which character is the child?

Great coming of age story—for both the child and the adults in his life.

excellent

Nick Hornby doing what he does best, and I absolutely could not pick a better narrator.

A story that you will remember

This was a fun, enjoyable listen. I thought I would try this audible selection after reading "Fever Pitch" which I found quite hysterically funny most of the way through. I did enjoy the humor in this book also, although it was a darker type which came mostly at the expense of a misfit kid. Good character development of the slightly off kilter adults that surround this poor kid, and his lack of being understood and nurtured by them. Luckily Marcus ( the boy) and the other characters mature through their interactions. The story will stick with me.

Another wonderful work by Hornby.

I love the characters and their quipping observations. Hornby is such a talented writer and observer of the human condition in all its gravity and absurdity.