Chapters 17-18 Summary

Noah reveals that Black parents discipline their kids harshly “before the system does.” Patricia tells him not to call her if he gets arrested because she will let him stay in jail just to teach him a lesson. When he borrows a car with bad license plates from his stepfather’s garage, he gets pulled over and arrested because the police think the car is stolen. He is more afraid of Patricia’s rage and Abel’s violence than he is of the police, so he spends a week in jail without contacting them. His facility with languages protects him there. He borrows money to hire a lawyer and raise money for bail, but after his release he finds out all the money came from his mother. He vows never to go to jail again.

Noah describes Patricia’s life with Abel, first as a boyfriend, then as a husband. A year after their marriage, Noah’s younger brother Andrew is born. Abel is known as a nice guy around town. But he dislikes Patricia’s independence, and one night when he is drunk, he hits Patricia twice. The police side with Abel. He gets violent only once in a while, but the family lives with a constant “undercurrent of terror,” wondering when the next beating will occur. Abel is a mechanic, and the family spends so much time at his garage that they begin living there. Noah sleeps in cars and starts helping in the garage at age 11. The business loses money, and they eat spinach cooked with caterpillars. Finally Patricia gets a new job, and they sell the business. Noah reflects on family relationships and concludes that they are sustained by love, not violence.

Shockingly, Patricia becomes pregnant again at age 44 and gives birth to Isaac. Then Abel beats her with a bicycle. After she finally gets a divorce, Abel shoots her in the head. She miraculously survives with no permanent damage.

By this point Noah has walked out. He’s touring as a comedian and hosting TV shows. Noah’s career is taking off, so he can pay Patricia’s hospital bill. She is blessed by Jesus, she says, because he gave her a son who could pay the bill.

Chapters 17-18 Analysis

Noah explains the disciplinary philosophy of Black parents. Many punish their kids harshly with beatings and tough love because they know that even harsher treatment awaits on the street from the police and the government. When Patricia gives him a hiding, she wants him to learn from her because she loves him. She hopes he won’t have to learn the hard way. But when Noah does get arrested and doesn’t call her, she finds out anyway and provides money for a lawyer and bail. The episode is a turning point for Noah, who realizes that the law is “a lottery” stacked on the side of those with white skin and money.

Noah reveals that Abel’s abusive behavior feels worse because Abel is known as a kind and helpful person. Noah is too young at the time to understand why his mother won’t leave. He only knows that he himself is not violent because his mother raised him to have a different life, one in which he isn’t a victim. As an adult, he is able to look back sympathetically at the situation that trapped Patricia, a woman in a society that condones domestic violence by not providing protection or options. The police are all men who side with the abuser, even after she is shot.

The author skims over his rapid rise in the last chapter, framing it as “I was gone,” out of his mother’s life as he performs comedy and hosts shows. The focus remains on Patricia as she is hospitalized, bringing Noah back into her life. He closes with yet another can’t-win religious discussion with his mother as she says Jesus paid her hospital bill—by “blessing” her with this son.