T.J. has gotten out of hand; Mr. Avery can no longer control him. What does he admit to Papa? Why does Mama insist that someone had better step in and get T.J. straightened out?
From the text:
'The other day Joe told me he couldn't do nothing with T.J. anymore. That's a hard thing for a man to admit.'
'He can still put a good strip of leather against his bottom, can't he!' It was clear that Mama was unsympathetic to Mr. Avery's problem.
'Said he tried. but his health's so poor, he ended up with a bad coughing spell. Got so sick from it, he had to go to bed. Said after that Fannie tried to whip the boy, but T.J.'s stronger than her, and it didn't do no good.' Papa paused, then added, ‘He’s gotten pretty sassy, too, I understand.'
'Well, sassy or not,' Mama grumbled, ‘they’d better figure out some way of getting that boy back on the right track because he's headed for a whole lot of trouble.'
Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry
