Lynn is a self-proclaimed genius, a master of chess, and a prolific journal writer. She is very close to her younger siblings. She spends her every waking morning with her sister, teaching her how the world works.

Katie is the first-person narrator of the novel and its main character. She is the middle daughter of Japanese American parents who move from Iowa to Georgia when Katie is five years old. Katie is very close to her older sister Lynn and protective of her younger brother.

uncle Katsuhisa is an ambitious man who does not want to spend his entire life working in a hatchery. HE wants to become a land surveyor although he has little chance of achieving that ambition because of prejudice against Japanese people.

Kiyoko Takeshima is a small, delicate woman with a nervous disposition she is easily upset and things to be kept peaceful and quiet. She is very protective of her children. she is also practical, and her husband allows her to handle the family's financial affairs.

As an adolescent, she naturally becomes interested in boys and acquires her first boyfriend, Gregg. Tragically, however, Lynn gets sick with lymphoma and dies when she is fifteen years old.