Chapter 17 Summary

Sonny is embarrassed that he doesn't have a suit to wear to Sam the Lion's funeral, but no one seems to notice, perhaps in part because Lois Farrow weeps throughout. Because of her crying, Sonny learns that's she was the woman with Sam the Lion at the tank dam. Genevieve tells him that Lois loved Sam the Lion so much that she would have married him in spite of his age, but Sam wouldn't let her leave Gene. Genevieve tells Sonny that Sam the Lion was quite a man and Lois was beautiful and more full of life than anybody in town. Sonny thinks about this a lot, along with all the other strange things Sam the Lion did, like his will, which left the pool hall to Sonny and Dwayne, the cafy to Genevieve and the picture show to Old Lady Mosey...