"Rule of the Bone" by Russell Banks

Rule Of The Bone, written by Russell Banks, is a story told by a short fourteen year old boy named Chappie, who endured a lot of pain and suffering. His father abandoned his family when Chappie was five. When his mother remarried, he suffered from his stepfather's abuse. Both his mother and stepfather were alcoholics and completely ignored him. To gain attention, Chappie got a Mohawk haircut, pierced his ears, and
sported a nose ring. As an escape, Chappie started using drugs and stole his mother's collection of valuable coins in order to pay for them. This totally infuriated his mother and Chappie decided to leave home. Following this, Chappie lived in an apartment above a video store with heavy metal bikers. A fire broke out, and Chappie left the apartment. Next, Chappie and his friend Russ, camped out in an abandoned summer house. Chappie eventually left and helped a young girl named Froggy escape from a drug addict and porno movie maker named Buster Brown. …