Tight by Torrey Maldonado (review)

Sixth-grader Bryan lives in a housing project in Brooklyn, loves doing homework at his mother's job, and looks up to his father, despite the temper that's landed Dad in prison a few times. When new neighbor Mike comes into Bryan's life with a cosign from both Bryan's mother and father, Bryan's wishes for a brother—as opposed to the annoying big sister he already has—seem to be answered. After some initial trepidation, the two young men, with similar light brown skin, bond over superheroes and their contrasting experiences in the same community. In brief chapters and slang-inflected vignettes, Bryan narrates how quickly Mike moves from being a mystery at his family dinner table, to a best friend, to a catalyst to some bad decisions like cutting school and subway-surfing. In this short novel, Maldonado's writing relies on a lot being said by a little; it's a book where readers will need to be on their game to catch and consider inference. The titular "tight," for instance, can mean anything from the feeling of two friends being as close as brothers to the feelings of frustration and anger an overworked mother might feel when her son misbehaves to even how restricted and cramped things feel to a working class preteen who just wants a quiet place to read Black Panther comic books. Bryan eventually learns that friendship—like family and (super-)heroism—calls for some serious reflection. The novel concludes with a fistfight and Bryan and Mike's relationship in disrepair, but the novel's clearest message is that this doesn't necessarily make their bond any less important.