53 pages • 1 hour read
Torrey MaldonadoTight
Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 2018A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapters 1-8Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 1 Summary
Bryan, the novel’s first-person narrator, is “chilling” at the community center where his mother, a social worker, has her office. Bryan often comes to her office after school to do his homework, and his mother and her colleagues have allowed him to set up a “pretend-office” of his own with a spare chair. Sometimes his sister Ava, who is three years older, joins him and helps him with his homework. His mother often helps neighbors and their children as part of her work, but today Bryan is distracted by a boy whom he has seen in the office several times lately. The boy’s name is Mike, and as a seventh-grader at Bryan’s middle school, he is about a year older than Bryan. Bryan’s mother tells him that Mike’s family recently relocated from the Bronx to Brooklyn, and she has helped his family to get an apartment in the same projects where they live. Like Bryan, he is African American.
Bryan observes with annoyance that both his parents have become close to Mike, who even hugs his mother and calls her “Ma.” Ava teases him that it is probably because Mike is her “real son,” unlike Bryan. (When they were younger, Ava used to joke that their parents found him in a trash can, and Bryan used to wonder if he was a true member of the family, since his skin is lighter than his sister’s.) Now, Ava calls Bryan a “momma’s boy” and says that she wishes Mike were her brother instead of Bryan. Their mother breaks up the argument and tells Bryan that he has nothing to fear from Mike, which he will find out “tomorrow night,” when he comes over for dinner.
Chapter 2 Summary
After school the next day, Bryan’s mother gives him a grocery list to take to the local bodega (grocery store). Much to his embarrassment, she also gives him a note for Hector, the bodega’s owner, asking for credit. Bryan wishes that he had brothers to help him do the shopping, teach him “boy stuff,” and defend him from bullies. His father, who mostly ignores Bryan and his sister, had three sons in a different city before he met Bryan’s mother, but he has long since lost track of them, and Bryan has never met them. As he leaves for the bodega, he avoids the elevator, which is littered with garbage and reeks of urine.
The bodega is on the corner where Bryan’s father’s “homeboys” hang out. These raucous men are friendly to him, but he avoids them whenever he can. Like his mother and unlike his father, he enjoys solitude and quiet, though his sister Ava says that this tendency makes him “soft.” His mother, worried about the effects of peer pressure, has ordered him to postpone making friends and to focus instead on schoolwork. At the bodega, Hector grudgingly lets him buy groceries on credit, noting that Bryan’s father hasn’t yet paid his last grocery bill. Bryan is mortified when Melanie, an attractive girl from his school, overhears this. Leaving with the groceries, he wishes that things were different: that his family had more money and that he had a brother.
Chapter 3 Summary
Back at the apartment, Bryan hesitantly visits his father’s room to ask him about Mike’s visit, which he is not looking forward to. His father, who has been in jail several times and is currently out on parole, is often surly and distant with Bryan, but today he is in a good mood, seemingly because of Mike’s visit. He says that he is making Bryan’s favorite meal, jamón y queso (ham and cheese) for the occasion. Bryan feels confused and jealous, wondering if his father is favoring Mike over him. At dinner, Mike charms the rest of his family with his jokes, making Bryan feel left out. Then he draws Bryan into the conversation by letting him give the punchlines for some jokes, which gratifies him. After dinner, Bryan’s father surprises him by offering to play dominoes with him and Mike; usually he only plays with his friends on the corner. Bryan is thrilled, especially when, after some coaching from his father, he beats Mike at the game. Mike praises his gameplay and adds that he plays dominoes a lot and usually wins. Although Bryan wonders if Mike let him win, he is still delighted with this rare attention from his father and with the new boy’s friendliness and admiration. He decides that maybe his mother was right, and that Mike will be a “cool friend” after all.
Chapter 4 Summary
Mike, like Bryan, is a devotee of superhero comics, some of which he has brought in his backpack. Bryan, who rarely has money for comics, owns only one: a Spider-Man that Mike says is very rare. The boys discuss their favorite superheroes (Black Panther, Luke Cage, Batman) and argue over which is better and whose “power” they would choose to have. Bryan chooses either Black Panther or Batman, because they are the smartest people on earth, but Mike prefers Luke Cage, who is super-strong and indestructible. Bryan learns that Mike, like himself, is an amateur artist who makes pencil drawings of superheroes. He is very impressed with Mike’s talent. When it is time for Mike to leave, he invites Bryan to his apartment the next day, assuring Bryan’s mother that his own mother will be home to watch them. She agrees and seems happy that Bryan will have a “safe place” to go after school, since she has to work late most weekdays. Excited about his new friendship, Bryan looks forward eagerly to the visit.
Chapter 5 Summary
Mike’s apartment house, with its noise and squalor, closely resembles Bryan’s, and he too avoids the elevator. He lets them into the apartment with a key, and Bryan sees that, contrary to what Mike promised Bryan’s mother, his own mother is not there. This deception makes Bryan uncomfortable, but he tells himself that Mike must be okay since Bryan’s parents like him so much. The two of them spend the afternoon leafing through Mike’s impressive comic book collection: Superman, Spider-Man, Daredevil, and others. Mike tells him that he shares his bedroom with his three brothers, but by the time Bryan leaves hours later, he still has not seen any of Mike’s relatives. Back at home, he tells his mother that his visit to Mike’s was “fine,” but privately, he is still troubled by Mike’s lie that his mother would be there to watch them. He reassures himself that they stayed out of trouble despite the lack of adult supervision.
Chapter 6 Summary
The next day, Bryan visits Mike at home again after school, and briefly meets his mother and two of his brothers. Mike’s family, who are always on the move, do not seem to spend much time together. Next week, Bryan is relieved when Mike suggests hanging out at Bryan’s place. In Bryan’s living room, Mike sees a photo of Bryan’s father and his friends in prison uniforms and is impressed, saying admiringly, “They gangster.” This comment reminds Bryan of one of the few pieces of advice his father has given him: that it is better to be feared than to be liked, because fear results in respect. Bryan asks Mike how he came to know his Pa, and Mike says that he met him at the community center when Bryan’s mother was helping his family. Bryan’s father offered to look out for him, since his own father was “not around.” Hearing this, Bryan wonders where Mike’s father is.
Chapter 7 Summary
Feeling that he and Mike are now “tight like brothers” (27), Bryan starts sitting with him in their school cafeteria. The two of them bond not only over their likes but also over their pet peeves, such as “disgusting” people who chew with their mouths open or break wind in elevators. Both of them note with disapproval a new addition to Pa’s circle of friends on the corner: a shady-looking man named Alex, who has a smarmy smile and an arrogant manner. Mike refers to him as a “snake,” and Bryan agrees, adding that his mother says he is “no good.” Mike says that this guy should watch out, since he once witnessed Bryan’s father punching out a troublemaker who was much bigger than Alex. Mike clearly idolizes Pa for this, but the story disturbs Bryan, who worries that his Pa’s temper may land him in jail again.
Chapter 8 Summary
At Bryan’s house, the two boys watch a UFC MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) fight on TV, arguing about which fighter will win. Bryan admits to his friend that he has never been in a fight, and Mike teases him “annoyingly,” adding that he himself has been in far too many fights. Mike claims that he can always tell which fighter will win by looking at their eyes. The one who avoids eye contact with his opponent is “shook” and will lose. As it happens, the fighter he chose does win the match. However, Mike’s arrogant manner, which seems so different from his past behavior, unsettles Bryan. Mike then refuses to share his potato chips, dumping the last of them in his mouth and gloatingly chewing with his mouth open. He also rubs in the fact that Bryan chose the wrong fighter. Shocked, Bryan remembers his original distrust of Mike and wonders whether he should have trusted that first instinct.
Chapters 1-8 Analysis
As the novel begins, the author makes it clear that Bryan, the preteen protagonist, must work on Charting a Course Through Family Dynamics that continually throw him off-balance. He also finds himself at numerous developmental crossroads, partly because he lacks guidance and companionship, and partly because his homelife can also be a bit tumultuous and uncertain. For example, his father is often in and out of jail and mostly ignores him, and in an over-correction of this factor, his mother discourages him from developing friendships for fear that he will fall prey to problematic influences. Even his older sister teases him incessantly and calls him a “momma’s boy” because of his closeness to his mother. Like most boys his age, he cannot decide who he wants to be, but he does know that he is not happy with where he is. In Bryan’s case, his family’s impoverished living conditions and financial difficulties are a constant source of embarrassment and anxiety for him. His initial response to this situation is mostly to wish that things were different. If only he had older brothers to protect and guide him, he thinks, and if only his family had more money, he would feel much more secure. Like many children of his age and socioeconomic status, he feels that he has limited control over his life and seeks escape in the form of fiction: the power fantasies of comic books, whose superheroes easily fight off their attackers, are impervious to pain, and always know just how to solve their problems.
It is also important to note that the ongoing theme of The Wages of Violence makes itself felt quite early in the narrative, for his father’s violent, macho temperament has landed him in jail several times; his father’s approach to life contrasts sharply with that of Bryan’s own nature, which (like his mother’s) thrives on peace and tranquility. His mother, however, has exacerbated his feelings of powerlessness and isolation by forbidding him to have friends, because she does not want him to be led astray like his father. At the start of the novel, Bryan therefore longs for new role models, clearer guidance, and a core of strength and confidence to protect him from his “drama”-filled surroundings. So far, he has received mostly mixed signals from those whose job it is to lead him successfully into adulthood, for his parents hold differing values and consequently pull him in opposite directions. Likewise, his older sister both helps him with his schoolwork and teases him for following his mother’s mild-mannered approach to life. As with many youths his age, the stigma of being a “momma’s boy” haunts him, and although he does not want to damage the close bond that he has with her, he nonetheless feels increasing pressure to break free of her aura of protection.
The story’s action begins when Bryan’s mother, deciding he is old enough now to have friends, introduces him to Mike: a boy whom she has partially vetted by peeking at his report card. Mike is the pivotal antagonist in Tight, since his behavior and influence incite problematic situations that force Bryan to confront the pressures in his own life and disentangle his deeper feelings about his situation, including his bond with his mother, his father’s violent temper and neglect, his sister’s scorn for his “softness,” his interest in the opposite sex, and the scary but exciting lures of delinquency. Thus, Mike’s duplicitous nature creates a conflict designed to illustrate The Role of Peer Pressure in Identity Formation, for in Bryan’s newfound friendship with the troublemaking boy, he finds himself compelled to take many questionable actions that he would not otherwise consider, and these incidents will steadily increase in frequency and severity as the story unfolds. Even in these early chapters, it is telling that once Mike is away from Bryan’s parents, he lets his mask drop a little. Likewise, Bryan soon discovers that Mike lies casually to adults, and he also makes it clear that he only pretends to “geek out” at school so that his good reputation will allow him to break the rules more easily.
It is also significant that Mike’s favorite comic superheroes are ones known for their brute strength (like Luke Cage) rather than for their brains, and he reveres Bryan’s father not for his generosity but for his violent temper and “gangster” reputation as an ex-con. Worse, he shows abusive tendencies and crudely puts Bryan down with insults and demonstrations of selfishness. Duplicity and bullying have never been among Bryan’s traits, and as he begins to feel uneasy about his new “friend,” the author inserts multiple instances of foreshadowing that Mike’s behavior will lead to no good. Yet even much later in the novel, after Bryan ascertains Mike’s true nature beyond any doubt, he will still cling to the relationship in an effort to succeed at Charting a Course Through Family Dynamics, for his family members have invested so much in his friendship with Mike that he does not want to reject a friendship with someone who has earned the attention and approval of both his parents. Bryan’s family members are the gatekeepers of his world, and in this case, they have let a “snake” into the garden—though one with a craftier protective coloring than Pa’s disreputable crony, Alex.
