Chapter 11 Summary

Richard and Ricky graduate high school, and that summer they get jobs in a steel mill. They make very good money there, and Richard quickly falls into a routine of taking care of his family. He finds that his mother keeps pushing more and more responsibility on to him, trying to get him to be the head of the family. Richard does not want to work in a steel mill for his whole life but feels he must do what he can to support them. He figures that he will keep doing this until he finds a way out of this life he sees ahead of him, but he worries because each day the situation seems more and more permanent. He takes a night class in writing and does not learn how to write, but he makes friends and enjoys talking to more...