Eliza is an eleven-year-old fifth grader who has long been overlooked by her parents and teachers, placed in a class for "unimpressive" students after missing the Talented and Gifted program. She possesses a quiet, unassuming nature but harbors a distinct inner life and a strong desire for parental recognition. Upon discovering an innate ability to visualize and correctly spell difficult words, she gains sudden visibility in her school and household.

Saul is the popular, guitar-playing cantor at Beth Amicha Synagogue and a scholar deeply invested in Jewish mysticism. He views his family members through the lens of their intellectual and spiritual utility, spending much of his time isolated in his cluttered, windowless study. He projects his own spiritual ambitions onto his children, offering conditional approval based on their performance and potential for transcendence.

Miriam is a lawyer who maintains a carefully ordered domestic life structured by rigid, late-night routines. Raised as an only child by parents with intense expectations, she developed a deep desire for perfect symmetry and order that she calls "Perfectimundo." She uses these private systems and her marriage of convenience to Saul to organize her reality and keep herself emotionally insulated from her family.

Aaron is Eliza's older brother and the family's initially favored child, functioning as his father's intellectual successor in the study. Though he projects confidence and pride at the synagogue, he faces bullying and isolation at school. As his father's attention shifts exclusively to Eliza, Aaron begins a private spiritual quest to find the religious acceptance and meaning he feels he lacks at home.

Dr. Morris is the principal of McKinley Elementary School. He oversees the school's Talented and Gifted program and represents the educational institution's initial, unenthusiastic assessment of Eliza's potential.

Sinna is widely recognized as the smartest girl at McKinley Elementary School. As a consistently high-achieving student, she represents the academic hierarchy that Eliza abruptly disrupts during the spelling competitions.

Born John, Chali is a young devotee of the Hare Krishna movement. He approaches religion with patience and openness, offering an alternative path for those seeking spiritual community outside traditional institutions.

Ms. Bergermeyer teaches the combination class for students considered academically unremarkable at McKinley Elementary. She leads the initial spelling bee where Eliza's unusual talent first emerges.

Marvin is a schoolyard bully who targets Aaron Naumann at McKinley Elementary. His aggression creates a crisis that pushes Aaron further into his father's isolated study for protection.

Billy is a student who joins Marvin Bussy in physical altercations against Aaron, contributing to Aaron's deep sense of social isolation at school.

Carrie is a classmate of Eliza's whose reaction to Eliza's spelling success takes the form of physical and verbal resentment, illustrating the social friction Eliza's new talent creates among her peers.

Ms. Lodowski was Eliza's second-grade teacher who bypassed her for the advanced academic program, setting the stage for Eliza's placement in lower-level reading groups.

Henry is Saul's father, who runs a car-repair business. He renounced his own faith after being rejected by his grandfather, and maintains a deeply strained, permanently severed relationship with Saul.

Melvin is Miriam's wealthy, deceased father. He and his wife placed intense academic and personal expectations on Miriam during her childhood, viewing her eccentricities purely as signs of genius.

Ruth is Miriam's deceased mother, who gave birth to Miriam after years of miscarriages and subsequently channeled intense pressure onto her only daughter.