Sek-Lung (Sekky)
Sek-Lung is the youngest child. He is the biological son of Father and Stepmother, and is born in Vancouver. He is a frail and sickly child, who is delayed in starting school, and spends most of his time with Grandmother. Sek-Lung is sensitive, imaginative, and thoughtful.
Jung-Sum
Jung-Sum, sometimes simply called Jung, or Second Son, is adopted by the Chen family when he is four years old. Prior to that, he lives in Kamloops with his biological family, where he experiences abuse and neglect. Jung-Sum eventually feels safe and close with his adopted family, and as he grows older, he becomes very interested in boxing. Jung-Sum eventually develops an attraction to a young man named Frank Yuen.
Jook-Liang ("Liang-Liang")
Jook-Liang is the only daughter in the Chen family; she is the biological child of Father and Stepmother, and half sister to Kiam. Jook-Liang often thinks about how being a girl shapes her experiences, and makes her different from her brothers. She forms a close bond with an elderly man named Wong-Suk.
Grandmother ("Poh-Poh", or "the Old One")
Grandmother is the matriarch of the Chen family. After a difficult life in China, she immigrates to Canada where she lives with Father and Stepmother, helping to care for the children. Grandmother is very close with Sek-Lung in particular. Grandmother is clever, resilient, and creative, but she is also traditional and resistant to change. She dies in the autumn of 1940, at age 84.
Father
Father is a Chinese immigrant, living in Vancouver with a blended family that includes his second wife, children from both of his marriages, and his mother. He often seems torn between wanting his children to assimilate into what he perceives as more modern Canadian ways, and wanting them to retain their Chinese values and identity. Father seems to work hard to take care of his family; he is involved with writing, editing, and journalism, and therefore seems to be well-educated. Because the novel is narrated from the perspective of the children, readers do not get much insight into Father's thoughts and feelings.
Kiam
Kiam is the oldest sibling in the household; he is the biological son of Father, and Father's first wife, who died mysteriously in China. Kiam is studious and gets very good grades in math and science. As the eldest son, he has a lot of responsibility within the family.
Stepmother
Stepmother is Father's second wife, and the biological mother of Jook-Liang and Sek-Lung. She grew up in China, and came to Canada to marry Father. She is usually a quiet and docile woman, but she does occasionally express her frustration at her low status (for example, her biological children still call her "Stepmother"). Towards the end of the novel, Stepmother also seems to help Meiying with her forbidden relationship.
Mrs. Lim
Mrs. Lim is an elderly woman who also lives in the Chinatown neighborhood, and is good friends with Grandmother. After Grandmother passes away, Sek-Lung spends a lot of time with Mrs. Lim and her teenage adopted daughter Meiying.
Wong Suk ("Wong-Bak")
Wong Suk is an elderly Chinese man who immigrated to Canada to work on the railroad. He comes to seek help from the Chen family because he knows Grandmother from China, and he ends up forming a close friendship with Jook-Liang. Wong Suk is considered to be ugly and resemble a monkey, but he is also playful, creative, and kind. Eventually, Wong Suk returns to China so that he can accompany the bones of many Chinese men who died in Canada and want to be buried in their native land.
Dai Kew
He is a family friend, sometimes referred to as Uncle Dai Kew. He works onboard steamships, and brings back the turtle which Jung-Sum adopts.
Gee Sok
He is an unmarried and kindly man who runs a successful dry-cleaning business in Chinatown.
Old Yuen
He is Frank's father, a Chinese man who drinks and gambles.
Frank Yuen
Frank is a young man in his early 20s who is often impressive to the younger teens and boys in the Chinatown neighborhood. Frank takes a liking to Jung-Sum, and inspires Jung-Sum's first feelings of desire. He eventually leaves Vancouver and moves to San Francisco.
Max
He is a Black man who trains at the boxing gym where Jung-Sum and Kiam sometimes go. He teaches Jung-Sum how to box, and also provides mentorship to the young boy.
Suling Chen
Suling is a childhood friend of Stepmother's; the two of them went to school together in China. Suling is Christian, and became a successful teacher. Stepmother works hard to arrange for Suling to come to Canada, but Suling dies in a bombing in China before she can emigrate.
Miss Doyle
She is the 3rd grade teacher at Strathcona School. When Sek-Lung is finally able to start going to school, he is enrolled in her class.
Meiying Lim
She is a 17-year-old girl and Mrs. Lim's adopted daughter. She is beautiful, intelligent, and strong-willed. Meiying pursues a secret romantic relationship with a Japanese boy, and ends up getting pregnant. She dies as a result of attempting to perform an at-home abortion.
Kazuo ("Kaz")
Kazuo is a young Japanese man who enters into a romantic relationship with a Chinese girl, Meiying.
