Family and Friendship

An important theme in this book is family and friendship. Who is a good friend and who is a bad friend? What makes a good father? Both Crispin and Bear are people who are completely alone, with no friends or family to support them. Crispin's mother is dead and he never knew his father. He has no real friends in the village, and the one person who was nice to him, Father Quinel, is also dead. Bear's own father abandoned him and sent him away to an abbey at an early age. He made friends with some travelling performers, but their group did not stay together long. Bear claims that he prefers to be alone, but he is anxious to keep Crispin close and is obviously very lonely. He does not trust people anymore and is sure that Crispin will leave unless he forces him to...