About a Boy by Nick Hornby focuses on the way that the two central characters, Marcus and Will, learn to trust other people and so find happiness.

The main characters in About a Boy are Will and Marcus. Will needs to become a responsible adult and Marcus needs to learn how to be a child.

Themes are ideas running through texts. In About a Boy the themes of isolation, adulthood and depression are explored.

About A Boy is a novel. The way the novel is structured creates a particular effect, as does the modern, realistic language.