In the book Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman, there are many odd twists and turns that 

occur in the book. The two major themes in the book that make up the plot are uncertainty, and fear. 

The main character faces crazy fantastical challenges that change him inside. Over time things get 

stranger and stranger as he has to face them partly alone.

    The first major theme that you see throughout the book is uncertainty. As the main character grows

he finds out that the world he lives in is deeper and there is more to it than meets the eye. 

Inexplainable things keep occurring for example on page 36 the boy encounters an which 

that patrols the farm and to get rid of it they suck into a magical ball and it explodes into nothing. 

Now obviously that would never happen in real life, but the major thing he faces is having to process  

the crazy newfound place. Also he has to balance facing an evil housemaid who is not who she 

seems. She taunts him and keeps him from defeating her while all alone. The poor boy has to face  

this with no one to turn to and no one who understands. 

      The final major theme that goes on in the book is fear. On page 52 the boy is chased and almost 

killed by the evil creature, I cannot imagine how terrifying that must be especially in the dark! Also 

he really has no one to protect him because his parents would never believe him, he is all alone and 

scared of what the creature might do to him. Fear is a MAJOR theme in this book and it goes hand 

and hand with uncertainty. Often people are frightened of things we do not understand, which is 

another example of fear that he must be going through. Throughout the book the characters face 

other minor themes that surround the big themes and help add other levels to the story and help build 

up the plot. I would highly recommend this book it is amazing.