The Parker Inheritance

In Chapter 35, Reggie Bradley’s perspective is shared from 1957 Lambert. His childhood was spent with his grandmother; with very little money, “Reggie really did have it worse than a lot of his classmates” (217). Reggie’s appearance, as a light-skinned Black boy with gray eyes, also earned him negative attention from his classmates. With high school came sports, and Reggie soon earned a name for himself as an athlete under Coach Dub. When Reggie fell in love with Siobhan, he struggled with Coach Dub’s negative reaction. Even on the night of the tennis game, Coach Dub “told him to leave his daughter alone” (219).

After the game, Reggie is attacked by several white men. Facing a man with a knife, Reggie fights using a broken mop handle and manages to sink the stick into the attacker’s “eye socket” (220). Reggie is rescued by Coach Douglas, who finds him and helps him, as well as letting Reggie know that Marion Allen is the person whom Reggie had partially blinded. Coach Douglas also explains that Coach Dub and his family have fled to Maryland; Reggie feels frustrated that this means he will not be able to see Siobhan again.