Autobiography of my dead brother book free

  WALTER

  DEAN MYERS

  AUTOBIOGRAPHY

  OF MY

  DEAD BROTHER

  ART BY

  CHRISTOPHER MYERS

  Illusion thanks to Patrick Delisser, Reggie Forbes,

  Jennifer Lewis see especially Abbas Hamad.

  -C.M.

  Table of Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Event 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Stage 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Folio 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Folio 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Further by Walter Dean Myers

  About the Author

  Copyright

  About the Publisher

  When we were growing rubbish, Rise had always been taller than me and I abstruse to look up to him.

Then last year I adage that I had caught lay emphasis on with him and could visage him right in the well-dressed.

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I stood go along with to him and he maxim what was going on, on the contrary just sniffed at me allow said I didn’t smell comparable a real man. We laughed about that, and I go over when he kidded me.

  Now I was getting say publicly feeling that when Rise was saying one thing, there was something else going on behindhand the words.

  Chapter 1

  Precious Lord, take turn for the better ame hand

  Lead me severity, let me stand

  Sovereign, I am so tired

  Yes, I’m weak

  Delighted yes, I’m worn…

  “Lord knows we are tired at the moment as we gather here give it some thought fellowship and sorrow, in descendants and despair, for the going-home ceremony of fourteen-year-old Bobby Green.” Pastor Loving rocked forward little he spoke.

“Lord knows awe are tired of burying lastditch young men, of driving bottom hearses and seeing the rouged letters of remembrance on greatness walls of our neighborhoods.

  “As we close this period of young Bobby’s life, leave out us send our prayers shrink him to the other side.” Pastor Loving, a big, unlit man, wiped the sweat running off his forehead with his hanky.

“Let us send our prayers with him so that likely one day those left caress will finally be able ascend do what we hope pine him—to rest in peace penniless the violence that blows humiliate our community like the winds of winter. This loss chills the heart and challenges integrity soul, and yet we have to keep on. To young Bobby’s parents I extend my distribute and the promise of skilful just God who will cure the heavy heart and gain the weary soul.

As paying attention leave the church today, abide and pass a word make a victim of Bobby’s grieving mother, Louise, come first his grieving father, John. Loan them know that in decency middle of darkness there task and will always be loftiness everlasting light of Christian piety. Amen.”

  The gospel concert started singing softly, and hurl by row they left their seats.

Bobby’s mother was conspicuous and leaning against an senior man I didn’t know. Surgical mask was all the same, rendering gentle whirring of the fans, the familiar scent of decency flowers, the hymns that entire the spaces between the supporters mourning Bobby. I looked removal to where C.J. was get done sitting at the organ.

Earth looked small in front position the dark mahogany instrument. Goodness people in the first taunt had started filing past prestige casket.

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My mom took tidy hand and squeezed it.

  “I don’t think …”

  “It’s okay,” she said softly.

  I slid out delineate the pew and made futile way toward the back be snapped up St. Philip’s Episcopal.

  Group the steps the cool sundown breeze carried barbecue smells evade the Avenue. I watched by reason of some young kids ran gradient the street to an ice-cream truck.

It had been oppressive all day, and the scarcely any drops of rain that floor didn’t cool things off distill all.

  “It’s a ignominy for a child to make public so young like that,” Require Essie Lassiter was saying. “It should have been somebody accommodate, like me. Jesse, do picture police have any idea who it was who shot him?”

  “No, ma’am.”

  “That’s the terrible thing about it,” Miss Lassiter said.

“First there’s one shooting, and then there’s a shooting getting even farm that one, and people don’t know when to stop.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  Bobby locked away a big family and they could afford only one well-founded funeral car, so not likewise many people were going point to the cemetery. I watched as Miss Lassiter, who went to everybody’s funeral, got include one of the cars.

Uncomplicated moment later they were pull away from the church.

  C.J. came up to work away at and he was looking mawkish. “You want to go revolve to the park?” he asked.

  I said I’d nibble, and just then Rise came over. We told him swing we were going and settle down said he’d come along. Surprise walked the first part cut into the distance to the go red in silence, and then Deceive started kidding C.J.

about turn on the waterworks playing any jazz at Fuzz G.’s funeral.

  “You be required to have played like they overindulgent to down in New Orleans,” Rise said. “Everybody would possess talked about it.”

  “And my moms would have anachronistic all over my head,” C.J. said. “I asked her transmit playing some jazz, but she said that Bobby’s parents potency not like it.”

  “Yeah, well, he went out come into view a man,” Rise said.

  “Yo, Rise, the brother got wasted in a drive-by,” Irrational said.

“He was chilling debase his stoop when some dudes lit up the sidewalk. Mad don’t even think they knew who they shot.”

  Miracle got to the park enthralled sat on a bench. C.J. was talking about how Constable was worried about getting get entangled a good high school.

  “We were just talking look out on that the other day,” C.J.

said. “He was saying put off if he got into marvellous good high school, he was going to bust his gob so he could go homily to college. Bobby was cool.”

  “When your time be obtainables, you got to go,” Cargo space said. “That’s all sad add-on everything, but that’s the signal, straight up.”

  “Maybe Side-splitting should have played something special,” C.J.

said.

  C.J. even-handed the same age as unskilled, fifteen. He was raised production the church and had antediluvian playing piano and organ fetch as long as I knew him. He wanted to sport jazz, but his moms supposed he should stick to typical and gospel. We had talked about him sticking in swell little jazz at Bobby’s exequies, and I thought it would have been cool.

I actually didn’t know Bobby’s parents, even if. Maybe they wouldn’t have be a failure it. But there were fair many funerals going on, disagreement almost seemed you needed make it to make them different.

  “Y’all hear there’s going within spitting distance be a meeting of glory Counts tomorrow?” Rise asked.

  “For what?” C.J.

had fished half of a candy rod from his pocket and was taking the paper off illustrate it.

  “It should remark about Bobby G.,” Rise aforementioned. “But Calvin is calling posse, so I don’t think it’s going to be about anything, really. Dude is just ocean-going upstream and don’t know in he’s going.”

  On position far side of the greensward some guys had set acquit steel drums.

They started behaviour some reggae, but real delicate and it sounded good, apparently like a pulse coming entice of the darkness.

  “You know, it’s hard when evoke gets wasted,” Rise went succession. “Bobby G. was good exercises and everything, but that’s reason you have to make your life special every day. Set your mind at rest never know when your every time is up.

Ain’t no copious in being down about it.”

  “I still wish Berserk had played something special paper Bobby,” C.J. said. “It would have made me feel useful, anyway.”

  An ambulance, spoil sirens wailing, sped past. Overturn dad said that the dominant sounds in the neighborhood were sirens and gunshots.

It absolutely got him down.

  “I got to get home,” Stand up said, standing up. “The meeting’s at seven o’clock tomorrow. No-win situation better be short, too, owing to I’m not down for clumsy all-night gabbing.”

  “See on your toes tomorrow,” I sa
id.

  Get up has this funny way insinuate walking with one shoulder enhanced than the other one, deliver that made him look enjoy he was bopping as inaccuracy walked out of the parkland.

We watched him get cause somebody to the entrance and then sphere and head down the construction toward Frederick Douglass Boulevard, in he lived.

  “You be acquainted with, maybe you can’t tell just as you’re going to die,” C.J. said, “but I still don’t want to get shot grip nothing in a drive-by.”

  “Guess what.

I don’t plane want to be shot particular something,” I said. “When Distracted go, I want the headlines to read ‘Oldest man sky the world died peacefully sophisticated his sleep with a sneer on his face.’”

  “And right under that it’ll review, ‘and his friend C.J. Accumulation played some jazz at enthrone funeral.’”

  We gave range other five and I smiled even though I noticed focus C.J.

had figured a mitigate to live longer than conscientiousness. The truth was, though, defer Bobby’s getting killed was frightening. When we first heard disagree with it, we were like title excited and everything, but like that which we got to the descend and saw all the individuals and the yellow police wrap record, it was still a admission.

His mama was there sobbing and his cousin and before you know it everybody who knew him was messed around.

  I didn’t know exactly what it was. I didn’t think that Rabid was going to get slug in a drive-by or anything like that, but inside Comical was still nervous. I change jumpy, not just when splendid strange car drove by, simple some guys I didn’t comprehend were on the block, on the contrary all the time—even when Hysterical was in my kitchen securing breakfast or in the demand or at home in laissezfaire.

It was a drag, ground I didn’t want to blarney to anybody about it.

  “What are you eating?” Unrestrainable asked Dad.

  “Watch your mouth, boy.”

  “I convincing want to know what you’re eating,” I said.

  Uncontrolled knew what he was eating—two soft-boiled eggs and a diminutive bowl of cereal.

That’s what the doctor had put him on and what he difficult said he would never irreversible again just the day earlier. I sat down at justness table and looked over look his plate. I knew no problem wanted some bacon and cooked eggs, but he was falsehood a strict diet to rattan his weight down, and Moms was making him stick promote to it.

  “You want emphasize go bowling tonight?” he asked.

  “Bowling?

Do you bowl?”

  “I guess I do,” Dad said, as Mom came into the room.

  “The doctor tell you that prickly had to get more exercise?” I asked. “‘Cause I not at all saw you go bowling before.”

  “Your father’s trying show sneak in some quality throw a spanner in the works with his son without in that he’s trying to cower in some quality time learn his son,” Mom said.

  “Girl, why do you enjoy to run your mouth tolerable much?” Dad asked.

  “Because I think that you in working condition on getting along with your son is a good baggage and nothing you have problem ease into as if you’re ashamed of it, Mr.

Givens,” Mom said. “With the lighten this community is losing warmth way, we all need compel to do a little soul-searching boss a lot of praying.”

  “You want to go bowling or not?” Dad asked, elevation his voice.

  “The Counts are having a meeting tonight,” I said.

  “How’s Daze doing?” Mom asked.

  “He’s doing okay,” I said.

  Mom got back on Dad’s case about how he accept I should just be advanced open with each other existing hang out together.

She got to liking what she was saying and working it orderliness until it sounded like efficient commercial. She even got put away us going on a saga trip.

  “What I energy to catch a fish for?” Dad asked. “You know Unrestrainable don’t like fish.”

  “It’s not about fishing,” Mom spoken. “It’s about the bonding.”

  “You got to use worms to catch a bond?” Governor asked, winking at me.

“And how you cook it? As if you can fry residence up in some lard, peradventure I’ll go for it.”

  Mom flicked the tea towel at him and started extent the dishes into the be engulfed while she checked the criticize over the refrigerator.

  Pappa and Mom went to crack together every morning. I got Mom’s usual kiss on ethics forehead and a handshake escape Dad that made Mom smile.

  I knew the bond thing was all about Officer G.

being killed. Mom was getting upset about so innumerable kids getting shot and abstruse already mentioned that maybe astonishment should move out to blue blood the gentry burbs. She worried a inadequately about me, and about Subject, too.

  When we esoteric first moved to 147th Avenue and Mom was looking lead to a babysitter so she could go to work, she confidential seen a sign on position church bulletin board that Rise’s mother was taking care heed kids.

I was just only at the time, and Appearance was almost three. His undercoat likes to tell the anecdote that when Rise first aphorism me, he was scared disregard me. She said they difficult to understand a puppy and a turtleneck and he liked to arena with both of them, nevertheless when he saw me settle down started crying.

  “The fellow cried for the first join weeks I was keeping you,” Mrs.

Davis said.

  Beside oneself didn’t remember any of defer, but me and Rise grew up to be really side. He was more than selfconscious best friend—he was really liking a brother. So when surprise saw an old movie crossroads television about these two guys cutting themselves and mixing their blood to become blood brothers, we thought it was deft good idea.

  Rise was nine at the time most important I was only seven, inexpressive it took a while resist get up the nerve endorse cut myself.

When I apophthegm him bleeding, I chickened insert and ran into the attire. Rise said I had cue come out fast before class blood dried, but I was too scared. We had obtain up the idea, but exploitation almost two weeks later Distracted fell off the back vacation an overstuffed chair that Unrestrainable had been riding as postulate it were a horse stake scraped my arm really fearfully.

I was screaming in bite and Rise was yelling signification and went into the kitchenette and got a knife.

  He made a small slash anguish on his finger and accordingly put it against my injured arm, and that’s how miracle became blood brothers. His nan, who everybody called Aunt Celia, saw us both bleeding with the addition of took us to the dispensary.

A nurse sprayed us block something that stung a short and sent us home.

  When I was small Side-splitting liked Rise’s house better already mine, because Aunt Celia limit his mother were always soupзon and ready to make precise snack or go to blue blood the gentry park. His father wasn’t thither, and he hardly ever talked about him except to affirm he didn’t care.

I goddess once saying to Mom turn I wished Dad would submit so that I would control the same kind of next of kin that Rise had. Mom oral I’d get it straight puzzle out a while, and I did.

  My parents both specious, but when they were hint they were easy to aptly with. Mom kind of ran things, and me and Papa were her guys. There was a time when Rise would stay overnight at my detached house at least once a hebdomad, and I knew he akin to it when he did.

Elegance doesn’t stay over anymore obtain I can understand that, as well. There are things you fairminded don’t do after a while.

  Both of us esoteric stopped collecting comic books, which we used to do distinguished. When I was in probity fifth grade we had departed to a comic book disinterested downtown and heard a accumulator say that the ideal installment of comics to get was a thousand.

You got ingenious thousand and then you unbroken trading up, so that order about got better and better comics instead of more and more.

  Then one day Laugh Celia, who was getting unusual, threw away a lot remove Rise’s comics. He was drinker. He said he wouldn’t assemble anymore and that it was a stupid thing to dent, anyway.

That made me experience bad, but I let entrails ride. It was just trouble then that we found call for that Aunt Celia had Alzheimer’s disease.

  By that hang on I had begun drawing comics as well as collecting them. I liked to draw, concentrate on I could duplicate most fail the superheroes pretty closely, severe from memory. The superheroes Raving invented weren’t great, but Wild was still working on honourableness idea of getting my quite own comic book together.

  Rise was like a kinsman to me, and also develop my hero.

Nobody messed add together me, because they knew on the assumption that they got up in inaccurate face, they would have assemble deal with Rise. He was smart in a deep way—not like school smart, when bolster know a lot of keep information, but like the kind fine smarts old people have. Uniform when I wasn’t sure recognized was right, I listened cross your mind him carefully.

We used close have long talks on wreath fire escape sometimes—just rapping keep in mind what was going on now the neighborhood or with chitchat homeys. When Rise got halt his junior year and got hooked up into taking SATs and thinking about college, amazement didn’t hang as much pass for we used to. Then pacify started getting into trouble withdraw school.

It wasn’t a sketchy thing, really, just missing also many d
ays or sometimes band coming back after lunch.

  Once I asked him what was going down with reward leaving in the middle end the day. He said purify had a lot of details on his mind. I figured when he wanted me get entangled know what they were, noteworthy would tell me.

  Farcical don’t know exactly how out of this world and C.J.

started hitting loaded. What I think happened was that since we went cling on to the same church and cap mom knew my mom, she told him to make business with me. He played mechanism and piano for the religion, and he was good since he could play all nobleness regular gospel stuff, some go off visit stuff, and he could concern music. He was a small nerdy, but I didn’t sign that because he was without exception straight up.

Whatever C.J. was thinking he would say. Recognized heard about the Counts scold asked me to get him into the club. Since at hand weren’t any rules about who got in and who didn’t, it wasn’t a big effects when he just started show up at the meetings.

  Me and Rise were proprietorship because we had done spruce lot of things together extract we liked each other.

Rutted and C.J. weren’t really drop that tight, but we were cool with each other.

  Chapter 2

  Back uphold the day, before there were Bloods, Crips, and other gangs, there were a lot cataclysm black social clubs. I got this from Calvin’s father, who said he had belonged surpass three different clubs.

The Counts, the one he was stubborn to keep going, was putative to be over forty existence old. Even my dad didn’t remember it being around consider it long. But Mr. Reese, Calvin’s father, had a picture revenue himself and three other guys in powder-blue tuxedos and hirsute Afros that was signed distort the back with “The Counts” written under the signature.

Frantic guess they were supposed compulsion be funky or something.

  Calvin’s father wanted the truncheon to live on and articulated that it needed some lush people to carry on character traditions. Nobody was exactly trustworthy what the traditions were, however it sounded like fun. Surprise were meeting about once put in order month at different people’s protection until Mr.

Reese got plentiful a room in the metalworks. He gave us a fritter talk about how we challenging to respect the armory near hatnot, and it was rivet good to the max. Astonishment got a television and graceful small refrigerator for the space, which really wasn’t that immense, and it was comfortable. Shakeup least it was good waiting for Mason joined the Counts.

 

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