Ed Kennedy
The protagonist of the story is underage Australian cabbie, Ed Kennedy. Single, poor, alienated from his family and basically a drifter, Ed’s life is that of a young loser heading nowhere at lightning speed until he foils a bank robbery purely by random chance and is transformed by the media into a hero. The mysterious arrival of playing cards with no return address in the wake of this incident becomes the force which finally drives Ed to reconsider his circumstances and pursue a purpose.
Audrey
Audrey is the romantic partner of the novel. At least, she is in Ed’s warehouse of desire. She is also a teenage taxi driver and lonely, but in a different way: because of sexual abuse early in her life, she only willingly has sex with men she doesn’t care about. Unfortunately for Ed, Audrey cares deeply about him as a friend. Ed’s acquisition of a purpose-driven life impacts the situation thoroughly.
Marv
Childhood bud Marv is prone to belligerence and tight with a dollar. At last count, carpentry work had allowed Marv to sock away thirty-thousand in the bank even though he could definitely use an upgrade in the wheels department. One of the playing cards Ed mysterious receives directs Ed on how to help Marv and it turns out the thrift is not due to being a stingy miser, but as an inheritance to pass along to a daughter he’s never met.
Ritchie
His actual name is Dave Sanchez, but he is referred to as Ritchie because of the Jimi Hendrix tattoo on his arm that looks more like Richard Pryor. He is another friend of Ed’s who enjoys the easygoing life of no ambition. Unlike Audrey and Marv, however, Ritchie is unemployed. After becoming awakened to the possibilities inherent in finding a purpose to his own life, Ed tries to convince Ritchie to begin looking for his own place in the world that doesn’t include drinking and gambling.
Gregor Kennedy
Gregor is Ed’s father. He dies six months before the bank robbery which commences the narrative, playing almost no part in those events and certainly playing no part of substance. At the end, however, his death is revealed to have been significant to everything which follows in a way Ed could never have predicted.
The Stranger
Ed meets a stranger at the end. He never identifies himself except to confess that he not only sent the cards to Ed, but set up everything that has happened throughout the story. The strongly hinted implication is that the stranger is the author of the book, Mark Zusak.
