Question

What is the summary of my brothers keeper?

Answer 1

Until their father abandoned the family and moved to California, Toby Malone, his older brother, Jake, and his younger brother Eli have a close, easy relationship with each other and their parents. After his departure, and their move into a small condo, Jake begins to associate with drug users and dealers. He becomes secretive, his behavior becomes erratic, and Toby, from whose point of view the story is told, is torn between loyalty to Jake and guilt at keeping secrets from his mother, who, coping with her own losses, is preoccupied and somewhat depressed.

For a while Toby runs interference, finding ways to care for his younger brother, mask the trouble from his mother, and cover Jake's tracks. His own stability is preserved in part by a comfortable, cordial relationship with an older man in whose store he helps, and who helps him find baseball cards he treasures. Finally, when Jake is apprehended and sentenced to rehab, Toby is relieved of his conflict and able to enter into a more authentic relationship with all his family members. This new stage includes releasing pointless fantasies about his father's coming back and rescuing the family from their troubles.

Answer 2

Toby Malone adores his older brother, Jake. He's the cool one, the MVP of the baseball team, the one who can charm their mother into anything. Even Mrs. Furry, the dignified family cat, puts up with Jake, clowning around. Toby, Jake, and their little brother, Eli have always had an easy, joking relationship, where it's the three of them against the world.
But ever since Toby's father left, things are off balance. His mother seems deflated. Eli has gone back to sucking his thumb. And Jake is becoming distant and secretive. As Toby struggles to keep his family together, Jake drifts further and further away. Only Toby knows why: Jake's slipping into drug use, the way their father slipped into alcohol before he disappeared. To spare his mother yet another disappointment, Toby tries to cover up for Jake. But his efforts backfire, only adding to the growing tension between the two brothers -- until finally Jake goes too far.