Moon Shadow Lee
Moon Shadow is the narrator and protagonist of the novel. Although he is born and raised in China, he dreams of going to the Land of the Golden Mountain to join his father. That is the name by which he learns about America before finally arriving in San Francisco while still a young boy. This move reunites him with his father. It is this reunion that stimulates a number of adventures he describes which serves as the bulk of the narrative.
Over the course of that narrative, he will learn that his father is a master kite maker. He will also learn of the White Demons that dominate this strange new land across the ocean. Much of Moon Shadow’s story is actually focused on the effects of xenophobic prejudice and racism directed toward Chinese immigrants by the bulk of white society. He will slowly come to learn that some whites are no demons and can actually be trusted. Among them are the landlady, Miss Whitlaw, and two brothers named Wright.
In addition to the man-made devastation of racial intolerance, Moon Shadow will also bear witness to the most devastating natural disaster in America during his life. Late in the story, the Great San Francisco Earthquake of 1906 hits, leveling most of the city and offering illustrations to the young of both the heights of humanity and its depravity. Along the way, he also learns that his father was once a dragon.
Windrider Lee
Before he becomes Windrider he is simply Moon Shadow’s father who has left to pursue the American Dream in the Land of the Golden Mountains. Like almost all the Chinese immigrants who made the same decision, he is a hard worker who learns English in order to facilitate assimilation. He also quickly learns to avoid or ignore that which must be avoided or ignored within the White Demons. Moon Shadow’s father never forgets about his son and the family he left behind in China, remaining in constant contact as much as possible throughout his prolonged separation.
This is not to suggest he is perfect. Windrider is especially gifted at making kites. He also believes that at one time he was himself a dragon and longs to return to his former cross-species glory. In other words, Windrider may be a worker because he has to be, but he’s a dreamer by nature. Further complicating things is that he dreams big. Especially complicating matters is that he is not the type to reach a point at which he decides dreams are childish things that must be put away. He is often willing to sacrifice what would be considered the more sensible path to take in order that he can pursue even his wildest ambitions.
One of those ambitions is flight. Windrider, as his name might suggest, becomes obsessed with a couple of brothers named Wright who built a flying machine and took to the air in Kitty Hawk, N.C. Windrider eventually begins corresponding with Orville Wright as members of the increasing brotherhood of flying enthusiasts. Eventually, Windrider and Moon Shadow will begin constructing a flying machine based on the actual blueprint design of the plane flown at Kitty Hawk.
The Company
The Company is a group of characters comprised of those who run a Laundromat among the Tang community in San Francisco. This includes Uncle Bright Star who is a riddle wrapped in an enigma. He presents himself as almost malevolent and definitely menacing yet winds up revealing himself who is capable of great love and bottomless loyalty and surprising selflessness.
Hand Clap is presented as the exact opposite of Uncle Bright Star. He is openly empathetic and loving and a figure of wild imagination rather than a tight-lipped sinister presence threatening to explode without warning. His gift for imaginative stories makes him a fabulist or a liar and while both are equally appropriate, one is far too mean-spirited to describe a person embodying joyousness.
Following the city-wide devastation of the 1906 earthquake, the Company extended a loan to Windrider. This investment is designed to allow Windrider to complete his dream of building a glider based on the logistics provided by the Wright brothers. The Company represents a cross-section of the Chinese community as individuals, but as a collective, they represent the community in the cultural sense. Their mission is partially to offset the negative influence of the White Demons upon the potential for Chinese immigrants to achieve the American Dream.
White Demons
Throughout the book, there are references to various characters collectively described as “white demons” or just demons. Although it could easily be interpreted that this name is a reference intended to apply to all white Americans, the purpose of it is to single out those Americans who are xenophobic and engage in racism toward Chinese immigrants. That so many Americans happen to qualify for the term “white demon” is an essential element of the book. It is also applicable to Americans who are assumed to be racists until they prove themselves otherwise, such as Miss Whitlaw and her son Robin. In that particular application, the term does not wind up being used very often.
