them

them Summary | Children of Silence, Chapters 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 Summary

Them is the story of Loretta Wendall and two of her children, Jules and Maureen, and their struggles with poverty and violence which negatively impact their lives causing a cycle of hatred and despair. The story takes place in Detroit, Michigan, from the years 1937 to 1967. As the novel begins, Loretta is a girl of 16 who lives with an unemployed, alcoholic father and anti-social older brother. Loretta's mother had been institutionalized for mental health issues and died several years ago. Loretta is a continual optimist despite her circumstances and feels the excitement of potential always around the next corner.

Loretta, with her long blonde hair and thin waist, is particularly pleased with her looks. Although she is not seeing any one boy in particular there are rumors about her spending time with the wrong kind of boys on the street. Loretta's brother, Brock, challenges Loretta on her behavior and the resulting bad reputation, especially about a certain boy named Bernie Malin, but Loretta is determined to see whom she wants.

On the way to a girlfriend's house one Saturday night, Loretta encounters Bernie and some of his friends on the street and Bernie convinces Loretta to go to a party with him. Eventually Loretta and Bernie return to Loretta's bedroom and have sex. At dawn the next morning, Loretta is jolted from sleep by a gunshot and through a haze realizes that Bernie is dead and that it must have been Brock who shot him. Loretta quickly dresses and runs to her friend Rita's house for help. Rita gives her what money she has and Loretta is determined to buy a gun to protect herself from any more violence in her life.

Leaving Rita's house, Loretta encounters a policeman, Howard Wendall, who accompanies Loretta back to the house to determine the nature of the crime. Harold forces himself on Loretta sexually in return for covering up the murder. Loretta feels nothing other than the fact that her youth is over. Now pregnant with Howard's, or possibly Bernie's, child, Loretta marries Howard and the couple moves to an apartment not far from Howard's mother, Mrs. Wendall. Howard is employed as a police officer and Loretta settles into the life of a young housewife and makes friends with other young wives in the neighborhood.

Loretta has minimal contact with her family, especially her father who was always out drinking or sleeping off his drunkenness somewhere. One day Loretta returns to her father's house for a visit and finds that her father has been institutionalized and no one had even bothered to inform her. Apparently, Loretta's father had created some trouble during a drunken brawl and sent away for observation. Loretta surmises that Howard, being on the police force, must have known about this but never told her. Howard is glad to be rid of his drunken father-in-law and the rift between Loretta and her husband begins.

Loretta gives birth to a baby boy whom she names Jules. Mrs. Wendall is particularly fond of Jules and visits the house frequently bringing clothes and gifts for the new baby. The happy news of the household does not last as Howard is fired from his job for corrupt behavior. Mrs. Wendall is especially mortified at this disgrace and the entire family moves from Detroit to the home of a relative in the country.

Howard takes a menial job and Loretta struggles to live with her in-laws, especially the overbearing Mrs. Wendall. Loretta's only joy is the delightful Jules, who grows into a curious boy who runs away all the time just for the sake of adventure. Loretta gives birth to her second child, Maureen, and her hatred of her life and her domineering mother-in-law continues.