Lucy is a writer and mother living in New York City with her husband and two daughters. Originally from rural Amgash, Illinois, she grew up in severe poverty and isolation, which fueled her early love for reading and her desire to escape. She is sensitive and perceptive, often feeling like an outsider in her current life while remaining hesitant to confront the painful memories of her childhood.

Lucy's mother is a rural Illinois woman who has never flown on an airplane before her trip to New York. She spends five days at her daughter's bedside, passing the time by sharing gossip about people from their hometown of Amgash. She struggles to communicate directly about emotions or the difficulties of the past, preferring to rely on stories of others to bridge the gap.

William is Lucy's husband and the father of her two daughters. He dislikes hospitals and avoids visiting his wife during her recovery, though he arranges for her mother to come. The son of a German man who worked as a prisoner of war in Maine, William's heritage is a source of severe tension with Lucy's father.

Lucy's father is a World War II veteran who suffers from untreated post-traumatic stress disorder. His trauma and guilt over his actions during the war manifest in abusive and controlling behavior toward his family. He keeps his household in extreme poverty and isolation, creating a fearful environment that drives his children away.

The doctor is a Jewish man and descendant of Holocaust survivors who treats Lucy during her extended hospital stay. He displays a gentle sadness and provides attentive, compassionate care. His tender bedside manner and customary farewell gesture of kissing his fist offer Lucy the paternal warmth she lacks from her own family.

Sarah Payne is an accomplished author who writes about rural life in New Hampshire. She acts as a mentor figure to Lucy, teaching a writing workshop in Arizona that Lucy attends. She encourages her students to report on the human condition through their fiction and provides Lucy with essential validation for her own work.

Jeremy is an older French psychoanalyst and neighbor of Lucy and William in New York. He is observant and recognizes the loneliness in Lucy despite her seemingly full life. He acts as a crucial artistic influence, explicitly calling Lucy an artist and instructing her to act ruthlessly in her creative pursuits.

Chrissie is Lucy and William's eldest daughter. She grows up in New York City but shares her uncle's interest in books about life on the prairie, though she rejects the specific childhood book her mother gifts her.

Becka is Lucy and William's youngest daughter. She is raised in New York City, far removed from the extreme poverty of her mother's upbringing in rural Illinois, and relies heavily on her mother for comfort.

Lucy's middle-aged brother still lives at home in Amgash, Illinois. He spends his time reading children's books about life on the prairie. As a child, he suffered severe public humiliation and physical abuse at the hands of their father, an experience that affects his adult life.

Lucy's sister remains in Illinois near her parents. According to their mother, she struggles with constant anger, an emotional residue from their difficult and impoverished childhood in the family's garage home.

Molla is a Swedish woman and one of Lucy's few friends in New York. She is talkative and frequently references popular culture and movies, standing in contrast to Lucy's lack of knowledge about such subjects.

Kathie is a wealthy woman from Amgash who left her husband and children to pursue an affair with her daughter's teacher. When her lover abandons her, she is socially shunned and unable to return to her previous life. Her story deeply affects Lucy's thoughts on independence.

Mr. Hardy is Lucy's sixth-grade social studies teacher. He teaches her about the mistreatment of American Indians and defends her against bullies, earning her childhood adoration before he leaves his teaching position.