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An Pham- The author of the memoir, son of Anh and Thong Pham, and a Vietnam-born Vietnamese-American. Strives through the memoir to discover where his "home" is. An is the first born son of his parents, and feels, both toward his parents and his sister/brother Chi.
Thong Pham- A mathematician-turned-propagandist, Thong was forced into the Minh Long Prison labor camp after the fall of Saigon. Scarred, both by physical abuse from his father and his own regrets, Thong lives out his latter years in a state of intermittent depression.
Anh Pham- A mother of six, Anh attempted to supplement her family's income in there hardest times. While Thong was in Minh Luong Prison, Anh was on the outside, trying to get him released. In the years directly after her family's departure to America, Anh rejected American culture in favor of her traditional one. Finally, after a long time in the United States, Anh begins to learn English.
Huy, Tien, Hien, and Kay- An's siblings. Huy and Hien are both homosexual, a fact that their mother is unable to come to terms with. Thong blames himself for this aspect of their personality. Kay is the only child born in the US, allowing her to grow up without as much Vietnamese influence as her immediate family.
Chi/Minh- Chi was An's sister who identified herself as a male. After accidentally getting her father arrested for child abuse, Chi runs away from home. Minh is Chi post sex-change. He returns after 14 years away from his family, a broken man. He has lost his job and his marriage has crumbled. Shortly after Christmas, Minh kills himself. Anh blames himself for this.
Grandma Le- An's grandmother on his mother's side. Grandma Le serves as a savior throughout the novel. During Thong's internment in the prison camp, some of his children live with her at her home. After Thong beat Chi, she stayed at Grandma Le's house. Grandma Le also helps An with the "jigsaw pieces" of his parents' past.
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