Nick Hornby
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Nick Hornby (born 1957) is an English writer who lives in Highbury, in north London.
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Biography
1957-1992
Hornby was educated at Maidenhead Grammar School then studied English at Jesus College, Cambridge. He started his career as a teacher, which he left to work as a freelance journalist and later a novelist.
1992 onwards
Hornby built his name first with the memoir Fever Pitch (1992) about his lifelong support of Arsenal F.C., then followed it up with the best-selling novels High Fidelity (1995), About a Boy (1998) and How to be Good (2001). Fever Pitch, High Fidelity, and About a Boy appeal in particular to men in their twenties and thirties, and draw on the author's life experience. Hornby writes in a very funny and entertaining style, but many observers have noted that his stories also contain a hidden depth, not necessarily appreciated at a first glance. Hornby also edited two anthologies, My Favourite Year and Speaking with the Angel.
In 1999 he received the E. M. Forster Award from the American Academy of Art and Letters.
Several of Hornby's books have successfully made the jump from page to screen. A British movie version of Fever Pitch was released in 1997 starring Colin Firth, and a film version of movie High Fidelity starring John Cusack followed in 2000. One curiosity of the screenplay was that it set the action in Chicago rather than the book's London. After this success, About a Boy was quickly picked up, and released in 2002 starring Hugh Grant. A 2005 Americanized movie version of Fever Pitch, starred Jimmy Fallon as a hopelessly addicted Boston Red Sox fan with Drew Barrymore playing his girlfriend.
Hornby has also written essays on various aspects of popular culture, and in particular has become something of an authoritative literary voice for pop music and mix tape enthusiasts. In 2003 Hornby published 31 Songs (published in the US as "Songbook"), a collection of essays on selected popular songs and albums. The music Hornby chose in 31 Songs varied from established classics like Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan to independents like Ani DiFranco, Top 40 pop like Nelly Furtado, and a few songs with resonance only to Hornby. Song by song, Hornby delved into what makes music catchy or classic, and how it can come to play an integral role in a person's emotional life. For best results, try to get access to a high-speed internet connection while reading this book — some of the songs Hornby writes about are obscure, and although the essays do make sense without hearing the songs, you miss out on the full experience.
In September 2003, Hornby began writing a book review column, "Stuff I've Been Reading," for the monthly magazine The Believer. In 2004 a collection of Hornby's criticism was published under the title The Polysyllabic Spree.
Bibliography
Novels
- (1995) High Fidelity ISBN 0140293469
- (2002) About a Boy ISBN 0141007338
- (2002) How to Be Good ISBN 0140287019
- (2005) A Long Way Down ISBN 0670888249
Anthologies edited
- (1993) My Favourite Year: A Collection of Football Writing ISBN 0753814412
- (2000) Speaking with the Angel (2000) ISBN 0140296786
- (1996) The Picador book of Sportswriting ISBN 0330331337
Non fiction
- (1992) Fever Pitch ISBN 014029344
- (2003) 31 songs aka Songbook ISBN 0141013400
- (2004) Nick Hornby's Polysyllabic Spree ISBN 1932416242
Filmography
See the Nick Hornby Filmography (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0394984/) from the Internet Movie Database
- 1997 Fever Pitch - directed by David Evans
- 2000 High Fidelity - directed by Stephen Frears
- 2002 About a Boy - directed by Chris and Paul Weitz
- 2005 Fever Pitch - directed by Bobby and Peter Farrelly
External links
- BBC News 2002: Movie hype helps Hornby (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts/1951276.stm)
- BBC News 2003: Hornby wins writers group prize (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts/3305129.stm)
- Nick Hornby Profile (http://www.penguin.co.uk/static/packages/uk/articles/hornby/) from Penguin booksde:Nick Hornbyfr:Nick Hornby