Plot Summary

I have broken up the novel into the nine chapters. Simply click on the chapter number and title to jump to that portion of the summary or start from the beginning. One note, I have not summarized anything that Johnny narrates from Toronto. The story does not flow well with all the flash backs and flash forwards. I hope to keep refining these summaries to make them more complete, clearer and just better.

Chapter 1: The Foul Ball
Chapter 2: The Armadillo
Chapter 3: The Angel
Chapter 4: The Little Lord Jesus
Chapter 5: The Ghost of the Future
Chapter 6: The Voice
Chapter 7: The Dream
Chapter 8: The Finger
Chapter 9: The Shot

Chapter 1: The Foul Ball

Johnny narrates some background information. He introduces his family, Owen, Gravesend etc. Strong emphasis is put on the fact that Owen and his family do not fit in with the rest of the town. They are outsiders, and their previous history is not very well known in the townspeople, however, Owen mentions the "unspeakable outrage" that his parents had suffered before, but we are not told what it is yet.

Johnny describes his mother, Tabitha Wheelwright. She is a strikingly beautiful woman, who is very concerned over Owen's future. She visits the Meany granite quarry in an attempt to convince Owen's parents that Owen should attend the Gravesend Academy and that they would not have to pay for it because Owen would get a scholarship. Her plan is to push the Meany's into sending Owen to private school are cut short, however, when Owen kills her accidentally with a baseball when he hits a foul ball and it strikes her in the left temple during a Little League baseball game.

Go to Chapter 1 Analysis
Go Back to Main Menu
Go Back to Top
Return to Entrance

Chapter 2: The Armadillo

The events in this chapter occur before Tabitha's death. Johnny reminisces about first meeting Dan, his mother's future husband and his future adoptive father. Tabitha meets Dan on the Boston and Maine, the railroad that she takes to Boston every week for her singing lessons with "the famous singing teacher", a practice she started with the encouragement of Pastor Merril. Pastor Merril convinced Tabitha's parents that singing lessons were as sound an investment in a person's future as college, since Tabitha had already said she did not want to attend college. Tabitha's refusal to attend college stemmed from her desire to aid her mother as her father was dying. After meeting Dan on the train, she tells him where she lives in Gravesend, knowing that he is going to Gravesend to interview for a teaching position at the Academy. When Dan comes to meet the Wheelwrights, he gives Johnny a stuffed armadillo as a present, the only present any of Tabitha's boyfriends gave to Johnny that he kept. Johnny also describes his extended family, his cousins and aunt and uncle. His cousins, Noah, Simon and Hester are all older than him, and fiercely competitive. Owen wants to meet them and comes over the day after Thanksgiving to visit. When he comes to visit, Johnny's cousins are awed by him. Their awe, however, turns into confusion as Owen accidentally wets his pants when they are playing a game of hide and seek.

The end of the chapter shifts to the time after Tabitha's death. The day after the baseball game, Owen gives Johnny all his baseball cards, as a symbol of his sorrow over accidentally killing his best friend's mother. Johnny, in return (with the advice of Dan), gives Owen the armadillo for the same reason. Owen, however, takes the claws of the armadillo, something that outrages Johnny, but Dan finds supremely symbolic. Dan explains that the clawless armadillo symbolizes Owen's feelings of helplessness and guilt surrounding Tabitha's death, an explanation which Johnny accepts.

Go to Chapter 2 Analysis
Go Back to Main Menu
Go Back to Top
Return to Entrance

Chapter 3: The Angel

Most of this chapter happens before Tabitha's death as well. Johnny introduces the dressmaker dummy, saying that his mother had a habit of buying clothes, copying them on her own and returning the originals to the store. It was her way of minimizing her expenditures and assuring herself of clothes that fit her. Johnny also describes their attempts to make Tabitha like the red dress that she got from a posh Boston clothing store, the one she tried to return, but could not because she said the store burned down.

Later in the chapter, Owen is spending the night over at Johnny's house when he complains that he is feeling ill. Johnny, not wanting to get out of bed, tells Owen to go and get help from Tabitha. Owen does so and returns to Johnny's room, saying that he saw someone in Tabitha's room, saying that he thought it was an angel. Johnny goes with Owen to his mother's room to see the "angel", but there is nothing there. Tabitha wakes up and determines that Owen has a fever and should go back to bed. Johnny goes to get some medicine for Owen, but while he is gone, Tabitha falls asleep with Owen in her arms. Owen, not wanting to wake her up, simply stays where he is. Later, Johnny's grandmother, comes to Tabitha's room in the night and startles Owen, who then yells at her. Harriet is scared nearly to death and Owen's scream wakes up most of the neighborhood. Owen later describes Harriet Wheelwright as "wailing like a banshee".

Dan's fascination with directing amatuer productions is well fed at the Academy and in Gravesend as he begins productions of all kind of plays for the town. He convinces Tabitha to take the leading role in only one of his plays, Angel Street. In a dress rehearsal for this play, Tabitha wears the red dress which she never intended to keep. The dress makes her incredibly uncomfortable, and Tabitha does not wear the dress in the real performances of the play.

Go to Chapter 3 Analysis
Go Back to Main Menu
Go Back to Top
Return to Entrance

Chapter 4: The Little Lord Jesus

In this chapter, the first Christmas after Tabitha's death. Johnny takes part in his church's annual christmas pagent. Owen is normally cast as an angel, but this year, he gets himself cast as the baby Jesus, much to his parents' shock. The part of the angel goes to Harold Crosby (a child will a proclivity for vomiting) and Johnny becomes Joseph. Johnny remarks at how creepy it is to see Owen taking charge of the production, to the point where he ends up being the director and remakes the entire production, much to the dismay of Barbara Wiggin, the wife of Rector Wiggin.

Mr. Morrison, the mailman, drops out of the annual production of A Christmas Carol, stating his disgust at not having any lines to say as the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come. Owen tries to convince him of the importance of the part, but fails. Owen decides to try out for the part himself.

Go to Chapter 4 Analysis
Go Back to Main Menu
Go Back to Top
Return to Entrance

Chapter 5: The Ghost of the Future

Owen takes over Mr. Morrison's part as the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come. He stuns the crowd with his eerie performance even though he never says a word. On Christmas Eve day, the pagent at the Episcopal Church of which Owen and Johnny are a part takes place. It is an utter disaster since everything goes wrong. Barb Wiggin screws up lighting, Harold Crosby messes up his lines, the kings are falling over each other and to top it off, Owen banishes his parents from the pagent when he notices they are there.

Christmas Eve day is also the final performace of A Chrismas Carol, starring Owen as the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come. Owen becomes ill and his illness makes him pale and weak with a very high fever. He refuses, however, to relenquish his acting duties to anyone and the final performance of the play goes on. In Owen's scene in the graveyard, Owen faints on stage, wakes up and rushes off the stage. Mr. Fish salvages the scene with his acting, but backstage, Owen proclaims that he saw his name and date of death on one of the graves in the makeshift graveyard set. Dan says that it must be a hallucination because of Owen's fever, and Pastor Merril takes Owen and Johnny to their respective homes. When Johnny returns home, he finds Lydia, the former maid of Harriet, has died and the new maid, Germaine, has hidden herself in the secret passageway out of fear.

Later that evening, Johnny calls Owen to discuss some inappropriate feelings he started having about Germaine. Owen and Johnny agree that is an indication of Johnny's biological father.

Go to Chapter 5 Analysis
Go Back to Main Menu
Go Back to Top
Return to Entrance

Chapter 6: The Voice

In this chapter, Owen and Johnny begin life at the Gravesend Academy, just as Tabitha had wanted, for the both of them. Owen was a scholarship student, attending the Academy on the basis of academic merit, Johnny, on the other hand is told by the Academy that he should repeat his ninth grade year at the Academy. Owen, out of faith to his friend, says that he will repeat the classes with Johnny. At the Academy, Owen quickly establishes himself as the ruler of the student newspaper "The Grave". His satirical remarks and blatant criticisms overwhelm the administration to the point where they abandon the fish only Friday meals at the cafeteria and allow him to interview prospective new headmasters which are being considered in the wake of the current headmaster's (Archibald Thorndike) impending retirement. His contributions to the school newspaper earn him the nickname, the Voice. It is in the winter of 1959 that the Reverend Pinky Scammon falls on the steps of Hurd's church and is killed. Pastor Merril is hired as his replacement under Owen's advisement.

On weekends, when the weather did not permit outdoor activities, Owen and Johnny began practicing what Owen called "The Shot". This involved Owen jumping into Johnny's arms and being lifted up to a basketball hoop to "dunk" the ball. Owen and Johnny were also of legal draft age, thus, they each carried a draft card. Owen discovered how to make a blank draft card on the copy machine in the Grave office. He began making fake draft cards for students who wished to have fake ID's and he charged $21 a card.

Finally, in the spring of 1960, the Academy hired a new headmaster, his name was Randy White, the only man who had denied Owen's personal interview. Owen did not like Mr. White from the start. Mr. White's first action as headmaster was to build a new headmaster's residence right in the middle of campus. This provided the headmaster with a new means to "entertain" prospective donors for the Academy. Pastor Merril moves from his dormitory apartment to the old headmaster's house with his family. Next, Mr. White moved the traditional morning prayer from Hurd's church to the Main Academy building and renamed it the morning meeting. Owen disapproved of this change, saying that the Main Academy building allowed for the headmaster to "grandstand" in front of the students, but the rest of his peers were rather happy with the change. Mr. White also made other changes: removing the Latin requirement and changing Academy lawyers. Owen challenged every change that was made.

In January of 1961, when President Kennedy is inaugurated as President, Owen sees fit to support the new Catholic president since he feels JFK is the model American citizen. After hearing JFK's speech, Owen decides to drop his sarcastic tone and he stops making fake draft cards. Basically, Owen decides to change his ways out of respect for a Catholic President.

Go to Chapter 6 Analysis
Go Back to Main Menu
Go Back to Top
Return to Entrance

Chapter 7: The Dream

As seniors at the Academy, Owen and Johnny are allowed to take the train to Boston on weekends if they chose to do so. Using their fake draft cards, Owen and Johnny patronize a local strip club, which Owen finds to be "disgusting" and "degrading". He suggests that he and Johnny leave the strip club, find a nice part of town and just "look at it". Johnny then begins to realize just how deliberate Owen's actions really are. They find themselves on Newbury Street where Owen takes an interest in a local clothing store window. The store's name is Jerrolds, and it is the store where Tabitha got the red dress that she hated. Johnny and Owen enter the store and begin questioning the owner and his son about Tabitha. The store owner, upon looking at a photograph which Owen has brought with him, remembers Tabitha as a local singing talent called "The Lady in Red". The owner of the store (Mr. Giordano) tells Owen and Johnny that Tabitha used to sing at a local supper club whose name he can't remember.

Upon learning this information, Owen and Johnny proceed to visit the "famous singing teacher" that Tabitha took lessons from. Owen had previously scheduled an appointment with the singing teacher, who was very anxious to meet him because his voice was so strange. Owen and Johnny question the singing teacher (Mr. McSwiney) about Tabitha. Mr. McSwiney remembers Tabitha by her picture and says that he got her the singing job at a supper club called The Orange Grove. The discovery of Tabitha's double life bothers Johnny because it makes him feel detached from the memory of what he felt his mother used to mean to him.

Later that year, Owen and Johnny are talking to Larry Lish, another student at the Academy. Larry Lish tells them that President Kennedy has been having an affair with Marilyn Monroe. This infuriates Owen and Larry Lish says his mother knows for sure and that she was coming to visit, so he could ask her himself. Mitzy Lish (Larry's mother) tells Owen that JFK is indeed having an affair with Marilyn Monroe, she them proceeds to insult and embarass Owen by taunting him. Owen responds by making a very risque remark about Mitzy Lish. This remark angers Mrs. Lish who tells the headmaster and tries to get Owen thrown out of school. Owen's friends and ardent supporters on the faculty are able to stave off the headmaster and executive committee's axe. The incident lands Owen on probation and he is forced to go to counseling sessions with the school psychiatrist, Dr. Dolder.

Early one wintery Saturday morning, as Owen was arriving to his job as a faculty waiter, Owen notices Dr. Dolder's Volkswagon Beetle sitting parked near the Main Academy building. At the same time, a large portion of the basketball team walks by, on their way to the team bus to go play an away game. Owen convinces them to lift up the car and put it on the stage of the Main Academy building which they do readily. Later that morning, a janitor discovers the car on the stage and the headmaster, along with a portion of the faculty, attempt to move the car before morning meeting. They successfully get ths car off the stage, but as they try to move the car down the stairs, they lose control and the car flips over with the headmaster inside. The casualties of the incident are Mr. Tuberlari's ankle, the first couple rows of benches, the marble stairs, the car itself and Mr. White's back.

Pastor Merril questions Owen about the car, only to steer suspicion away from him, but the headmaster knows that Owen is responsible. Mr. White, however, is unable to pin the blame on Owen and Owen gets away. Shortly after that, however, Larry Lish is caught trying to buy alcohol with his fake draft card. He fingers Owen as the maker and Owen is expelled from school.

In retaliation for being expelled, Owen takes the statue of Mary Magdelene from the Catholic school in Gravesend, cuts her head and arms off and bolts her to the stage of the Main Academy building. Mr. White is infuriated but he has already lost control of the school. The board does not renew his contract and he does not return as headmaster the next year. Johnny and Dan discover that Owen has been divulging information about a recurring dream he has been having to Pastor Merril, but they do not know any specifics.

Owen is preparing to go to college, but his acceptances to both Yale and Harvard are delayed in light of the incident with the statue but Owen declines them both. Instead, he enrolls at the University of New Hampshire as a member of the Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC).

Go to Chapter 7 Analysis
Go Back to Main Menu
Go Back to Top
Return to Entrance

Chapter 8: The Finger

In the summer of 1962, Johnny begins to work for his uncle as a logger. Owen starts working the granite quarries for his father. One day, while logging, Simon stabs himself in the leg with a cant dog and has to be taken to the hospital. At the hospital, they meet a guy who tells them that Marilyn Monroe has died. The news is sobering to Owen.

Owen and Johnny begin as freshmen at the University of New Hampshire as commuters from Gravesend. They tend to hang out with Hester's friends since she attends the university as well, but is a senior. Owen begins to develop a "minimalist style" and becomes rather inconspicuous and goes unnoticed as a student. The next summer, Johnny begins working in the Meany Monuments shop. the next school year, while studying geology one day, Owen and Johnny hear that President Kennedy has been killed. The news is also very sobering to Owen.

In the summer of 1964, Owen finally replaces the statue of Mary Magdelene for the Catholic Church, something he had been endeavoring to do for more than 2 years. That same summer, as part of his ROTC training, Owen goes off to basic training. He is given a second rating and is told he will not see combat. This disappoints Owen for reasons the reader learns later.

After Owen returns from Basic Training, he and Johnny are sitting in Hester's apartment when Owen finally describes the dream he has been having. His retelling of the dream angers Hester and she starts beating him. Johnny takes Owen away and brings him to his grandmother's house. Owen and Johnny decide to take a trip to the Sawyer Depot because Owen had always wanted to go, but never got the chance. They stayed for a short while with the Eastman's and then went to the border, just to see what Canada looked like.

Upon their return, Owen goes to Fort Huachuca in Arizona. He becomes a casualty officer, handling the bodies of the dead as they return home to be buried. Hester remarks that he is in the right business. In the spring of 1967, Johnny recieves a notice from the Gravesend draft board to report for his physical. Owen takes a leave and returns home to Gravesend to help Johnny. Owen decides to make Johnny physically unfit to serve. Using the diamond wheel, he cuts off the top two joints of Johnny's right index finger.

Go to Chapter 8 Analysis
Go Back to Main Menu
Go Back to Top
Return to Entrance

Chapter 9: The Shot

Owen knows he is going to die and he knows how and when. He makes his own headstone with the diamond wheel and tells his father not to look at it until after he died. After Owen's death, Johnny visits the Meanys to express his condolences. At this time, Mr. Meany tells Johnny that Owen was a virgin birth.

This news angers Johnny and he visits Pastor Merril for guidance. At this time he discovers that Pastor Merril is the one who took the baseball that killed Tabitha; Pastor Merril is Johnny's biological father. Johnny takes the ball and leaves.

Angered already by the Meanys, and now even more infuriated by Pastor Merril, Johnny returns to the Meany house and takes the dressmaker dummy which Owen has fitted with the arms from the original statue of Mary Magdelene and goes back to the church. Johnny puts the dummy in the shadows and throws the baseball through one of the stained glass windows. Pastor Merril comes out and tries to find Johnny, knowing it was him that threw the ball. He sees the dummy in the shadows and thinks it's Tabitha which causes him to practically faint. Johnny takes the dummy and ball, drives out to the breakwater in Rye and throws the ball into the ocean. He then walks out to the sandbar and heaves the dummy into the water as far as he can and watches it sink into the ocean. Afterwards, he returns to Hester's apartment and moves out, then he goes to 80 Front Street and tells his grandmother he is leaving for Canada after Owen's funeral.

The story now jumps to just before Owen's death. Johnny recieves a late night call from Owen, asking him to come out to Arizona to visit. Johnny accepts with a little prodding and flies out to meet Owen for a few days. At the airport, Johnny meets Owen and soon after meets the Jarvits family, the family of the warrant officer (Frank Jarvits) whose body Owen was in charge of. Owen, Johnny and an officer at the airport who accompanies them (Major Rawls) leave the airport. Johnny and Owen check into a hotel for the night. The next day, Owen, Johnny and Major Rawls meet the mortician and make arrangements for the soldier's funeral. Then, all three of them go the warrant officer's residence where they again meet the Jarvits family. Owen and Johnny meet Dick Jarvits, a severely disturbed and very violent 15 year old boy who can't wait to be old enough to go fight in the Vietnam War. Major Rawls says that Dick is "beyond saving" but Owen says that is it is not their place to say who is beyond saving.

Two days later, Owen and Johnny go to the airport to leave town. At the airport, they run into a group of nuns who are taking care of a group of Vietnamese children. The nuns ask for Owen's assistance in taking the boys to the bathroom and Owen agrees. While Owen and Johnny are in the bathroom, Dick Jarvits breaks down the door and throws in a grenade. Johnny catches the grenade and tosses it to Owen who then jumps into Johnny arms and is lifted up (the shot) to the window sill high above their heads. The grenade detonates, sending Owen flying into a nearby sink. Major Rawls, who is also at the airport, catches Dick running away from the bathroom. Dick tries to attack the major, but Rawls kills him. Johnny finds Owen and sees that the blast has ripped his arms off below the elbows. Owen dies of blood loss and shock.

Go to Chapter 9 Analysis
Go Back to Main Menu
Go Back to Top
Return to Entrance