Born a Crime

by

Trevor Noah

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Trevor’s younger brother, the son of Abel and Patricia. Trevor and Andrew are never particularly close—Andrew is nine years younger and much closer to his father, whereas Trevor fears and avoids Abel. This is because Abel respects Andrew (his firstborn) but sees Trevor as a threat (a reminder of Patricia’s past relationship with Robert). In fact, Andrew frequently tries to talk Abel down during his violent outbursts, including the final one when he shoots Patricia in the head. After this incident, Andrew is the one to call Trevor and accompany him at the hospital. Trevor finds it difficult to imagine how painful it must be for Andrew to reconcile his love for both Abel and Patricia after this attempted murder.
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Andrew Character Timeline in Born a Crime

The timeline below shows where the character Andrew appears in Born a Crime. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 1
Racism, Apartheid, and the Cycle of Poverty Theme Icon
Identity, Belonging, and Community Theme Icon
...“war club” and threatens the car’s driver. So Noah, his mother, and his baby brother Andrew get in the minibus. (full context)
Racism, Apartheid, and the Cycle of Poverty Theme Icon
Identity, Belonging, and Community Theme Icon
Resilience Through Religion, Education, and Humor Theme Icon
...At a stoplight, they jump out of the car—Patricia pushes Trevor out and jumps with Andrew after him—and then take off running, which is second nature by now. (full context)
Chapter 18
Racism, Apartheid, and the Cycle of Poverty Theme Icon
Identity, Belonging, and Community Theme Icon
Love and Personal Growth Theme Icon
...name, Ngisaveni, means “be afraid.” They get married anyway, and soon Patricia has another son, Andrew, when Trevor is nine years old. They visit Abel’s family in the tropical Tsonga homeland,... (full context)
Racism, Apartheid, and the Cycle of Poverty Theme Icon
Love and Personal Growth Theme Icon
After Andrew’s birth, Abel increasingly tries to “impose his ideas of what he thought his family should... (full context)
Resilience Through Religion, Education, and Humor Theme Icon
...up, Patricia keeps yelling at him, and he hits her again. She brings Trevor and Andrew to the police station. (full context)
Racism, Apartheid, and the Cycle of Poverty Theme Icon
...will be fine, that they understand that “it happens,” and not to worry. Patricia takes Andrew and Trevor to Soweto, and a few weeks later, Abel comes to apologize. Frances encourages... (full context)
Love and Personal Growth Theme Icon
Unlike with Trevor, Patricia stops physically disciplining Andrew relatively early on. She learns this lesson from Trevor, who is never violent, even though... (full context)
Identity, Belonging, and Community Theme Icon
Love and Personal Growth Theme Icon
Resilience Through Religion, Education, and Humor Theme Icon
...still manages to hit him on occasion. On the other hand, Abel loves and respects Andrew, his firstborn and the only person in the house who is not afraid of his... (full context)
Racism, Apartheid, and the Cycle of Poverty Theme Icon
Love and Personal Growth Theme Icon
...Soon, Patricia and Abel move to separate bedrooms, and Trevor is counting the years until Andrew turns 18—and then Patricia gets pregnant and gives birth to Isaac nine months later. (full context)
Love and Personal Growth Theme Icon
...Trevor gets a phone call from his mom’s number on a Sunday morning. It is Andrew, reporting that “mom’s been shot.” Trevor immediately knows who did it and rushes to the... (full context)
Love and Personal Growth Theme Icon
...and she tells Trevor, “it’s okay, baby. I’m fine.” She tells Trevor to go to Andrew, and he does. (full context)
Racism, Apartheid, and the Cycle of Poverty Theme Icon
Love and Personal Growth Theme Icon
Resilience Through Religion, Education, and Humor Theme Icon
Andrew tells Trevor the story in more detail: Abel drunkenly insisted that he would kill the... (full context)
Love and Personal Growth Theme Icon
Andrew does not know what has happened to Abel. Trevor decides to call him, and he... (full context)
Racism, Apartheid, and the Cycle of Poverty Theme Icon
...murder and gets three years of probation—no prison time. He still has partial custody of Andrew and Isaac and is “walking around Johannesburg today, completely free,” still living in the same... (full context)