Tar Baby

Alfred Brooks

During the book, Alfred Brooks, a seventeen-year-old adolescent
and the protagonist of the novel, develops from an indecisive youth
into a confident young man. The novel is really his coming of age
story.

In the first chapters, Alfred, who was orphaned at a young age,
appears as a shy, restless youth who almost seems afraid of his
own shadow. He swallows the insults hurled by Major and Hollis
and avoids answering the questions posed by his uncle about his
future. When he learns that James, his good friend, is going with
Major and his gang to rob the home of the Epsteins, Alfred, feeling
helpless, does not really try to stop any of them. After the robbery
fiasco, Major confronts him and blames Alfred for not telling them
about the Epsteins’ alarm. He then strikes Alfred, who does
nothing to try and protect himself.

Largely due to the misery that he feels over the loss of his
friendship with James, who is in jail, Alfred decides that ...