Billy Peterson
also written Billy in the book
Biography
Lived close to the narrator. Described as bullying and teasing other children. Threatened kittens with a BB gun at approximately age ten; his palm was cut when the narrator took the gun. Later left stuck knee-deep in strawberry-patch mud by Bob and the narrator. Also had an unnamed brother. Named in the neighbors list following 'The Johnsons'; precise family relationships are not stated.
Timeline
When we were, maybe, ten years old
Bernard takes Billy's BB gun to protect kittens
Billy threatened kittens in a rusty burn barrel. Bernard took the gun and ran away; its sharp sight ripped Billy's palm open.
Bernie's Chapterone day
Bob and Bernard leave Billy stuck in mud
During a tremendous rainstorm, Billy became stuck knee-deep in mud. Bob and Bernard left him there and told no one.
Bernie's Chapter
Stories mentioning Billy
- Bob's Bright Fragments of ChildhoodBob lists vivid childhood memories: neighbors, a gasoline burn while playing with a toy steamshovel, Barbara refusing medicine, Bernie's skating injury, and Tom Johnson knocking out power lines with a falling tree. He recalls visiting the Rodgers in Cordova, swimming at Campbell’s Island, annual Riverside Park picnics, Iris’s wedding, and poker games with Art and Eileen Cordingly. Other memories include orchard camping and spraying, gathering walnuts, toys and homemade kites, fireworks, homemade foods, hauling water when the well dried up, building a house addition, basement heat relief and flooding, coal heating, backyard tomatoes, and the surviving mailbox millstone.
- Childhood Beside the Peterson FamilyBernard contrasts his mother's gentle handling of accidents with the Petersons' fearful household, where children faced beatings for accidents or insufficient study. He remembers Eileen becoming a sweet person despite this treatment and believes the harsh rules troubled the boys, especially Billy.
- Standing Up for the KittensBilly called Bob and Bernard over to watch him kill kittens in a rusty burn barrel with a BB gun. Bernard seized the gun and ran away before Billy could kill them. The gun's sharp sight cut Billy's palm, and Billy became Bernard's enemy. Bernard felt proud to oppose his cruelty.
- Billy Stuck in the Strawberry PatchDuring a tremendous rainstorm, Bob and Bernard walked with Billy through his strawberry patch. When Billy became stuck knee-deep in mud, they left him there without telling anyone, recalling it as a way of getting back at him.
Referenced in
Family corrections
Notes sent in by the family and approved on review. They sit alongside the original record — the book's wording is never changed.
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