Chanda
Smart and spunky, Chanda is the backbone of her family. She serves as both narrator and protagonist of the story. As a girl, she dreamed of becoming somebody important, but she can't seem to catch a break. Her dad and brothers die when she's still very young. She is the one who keeps her family alive and well, to the best of her abilities, when her mom becomes ill. After watching man after man try to fill the role of father -- not to mention being systematically raped by one of them, -- Chanda abandons all interest in boys. She's too busy trying to manage a household of young children alone. Chanda is hard-working and fearless, but she tends to be judgmental and suspicious, no doubt as a result of her difficult life.
Lillian
Chand's mom Lillian tries to do her best by her family. Constantly falling in love, she unwittingly opens her children up to a great deal of pain. She herself suffers from her love affairs in various ways -- the tragic death of her first husband, betrayal after Issac molests Chanda, Dube's death after a heart attack, and finally Jonah's alcoholism and suicide. After all is said and done, she loves each of those men, but her love costs. She pays the final price for her affairs when she's diagnosed with AIDS and eventually dies. She's a proud woman who does not readily accept help.
Mr. Selalame
He's Chand's favorite teacher in school who urges her to devote herself to her education, recognizing great promise in her.
Papa
After receiving a promotion at work, he decides to move his family to Bonang. Through no fault of his own, he and his sons die in a mining accident shortly after the move.
Esther
Esther and Chanda become friends in elementary school since they're in the same class together. They remain inseparable until middle school when Chanda retreats into herself because of Issac's abuse. Esther has a difficult home life as well and ends up on her own. Desperate to survive, she becomes a prostitute. When she and Chanda reconnect, they fight bitterly over the efficacy of Esther's profession. Esther continues to dive deeper and deeper into the slums until she's raped by this guy one day who is rumored to have AIDS. She catches it and reaches out to Chanda for help.
Issac Pheto
He's the man who hires Lillian to clean his home and allows her and Chanda to live with him. Playing the gentleman, he starts to woo Lillian. Eventually they have sex, and Lillian gives birth to Iris. He loses interest in her, however, after her pregnancy and begins to pay attention to the newly budding Chanda. His charm soon fades as he starts sexually assaulting the girl. When he's caught, he throws all of them out of his home for good.
Mrs. Tafa
She's a moderately wealthy older woman who lives alone. When she hears about Lillian's situation with Issac, she welcomes her and her children into her home. In exchange she asks them to take care of her garden. She introduces Lillian to Jonah after Mr. Dube dies, hoping to cheer her up.
Mr. Dube
Mr. Dube is a barber who meets and immediately falls in love with Lillian. They have a beautiful love affair and a child, Sara, but it's cut short by his untimely death due to a heart attack.
Jonah
Jonah is the last man with whom Lillian takes up. He's eager to marry her, but she refuses. Still he agrees to become a father to her children and to welcome the family into his home. Soon baby Sara is born, followed by several miscarriages which upset Lillian immensely. Preoccupied with his home life, Jonah gets fired from his job as a contractor. This blow combined with the grief over the miscarriages drive him to drink. He becomes a full-blown alcoholic, barely showing his face at home. After Sara gets sick and dies, he throws himself down a well and dies.
