Born Marietta "Missy" Greer, Taylor is a fiercely independent and self-assured young woman who leaves her rural Kentucky home in a 1955 Volkswagen Beetle to forge her own destiny. She intentionally renames herself after a road sign and refuses to let romantic relationships dictate her life choices. Resourceful and compassionate, she unexpectedly finds herself serving as the sole caretaker for a traumatized toddler.

Lou Ann is a passive and highly anxious young woman from Kentucky who finds herself isolated in Tucson, Arizona, when her marriage crumbles just before the birth of her son. She frequently fixates on disasters and freak accidents in the newspaper, certain that catastrophe is always approaching. Moving in with Taylor gives her a desperately needed connection to her roots and a chance to build her own self-sufficiency.

Initially an unnamed, silent toddler, Turtle was handed to Taylor in an Oklahoma parking lot. Believed to be around three years old, her physical and emotional development has been severely stunted by early physical and sexual abuse. Her most distinctive trait early on is her unbreakable physical grip, which leads Taylor to give her a nickname.

Estevan is a former English teacher and an Indigenous Maya man who fled his home country of Guatemala due to intense political persecution. Currently working as a dishwasher in a Chinese restaurant in Tucson, he is intelligent, well-spoken, and charming. He retains his compassion for others despite facing discrimination and living with a precarious legal status in the United States.

Esperanza is a Maya woman from Guatemala seeking political asylum in the United States alongside her husband. Carrying the heavy weight of extreme trauma and loss from her time in Guatemala, she is deeply depressed and often withdrawn. Despite her profound grief, she displays a gentle, loving demeanor when interacting with young children.

Mattie is the independent and highly capable owner of Jesus is Lord Used Tires. Beyond running her auto shop and maintaining a thriving vegetable garden in the dry desert, she secretly operates her home as a sanctuary for Central American refugees navigating the asylum process. She serves as an important mentor figure for Taylor, demonstrating how women can thrive independently.

Angel is Lou Ann's estranged husband, who lost a leg in a vehicle accident on Christmas Day. The accident drastically altered his personality, causing him to become emotionally distant, accusatory, and bitter. His growing resentment eventually leads him to abandon his pregnant wife to join a rodeo circuit.

Raising her daughter as a single parent in impoverished Pittman County, Kentucky, Taylor's mother is a hardworking woman who cleans houses to survive. She instills fierce confidence and practical skills in her daughter, giving Taylor the emotional foundation needed to leave town and succeed on her own terms.

Sandi is a young employee at Burger Derby who befriends Taylor shortly after Taylor's arrival in Tucson. Obsessed with horses, she introduces Taylor to a mall daycare system that helps struggling working mothers afford child care.

Edna Poppy is an elderly woman who lives next door to Taylor and Lou Ann. She is blind, though she frequently navigates the world and identifies things through scent and touch. She relies on her housemate for some assistance while maintaining her own distinctive ways of observing the neighborhood.

Virgie Parsons is Edna Poppy's housemate and close friend. She holds some prejudiced views about immigrants but serves as the primary physical guide for her blind companion, helping Edna navigate their community and keeping a watchful eye on the neighbors.

Dwayne Ray is the infant son of Lou Ann and Angel Ruiz. His mother worries endlessly over his health and future, projecting her deep anxieties about the dangers of the world onto his daily well-being.

Ismene is the young daughter of Estevan and Esperanza. She was forcibly taken by the Guatemalan government as a hostage to pressure her parents, leaving a profound void and source of grief in their lives as they fled the country to protect others.

Newt is a young man from Pittman County whose father was severely injured in an exploding tractor tire incident. Falling into the cycle of rural poverty that Taylor desperately wishes to escape, his tragic, violent end serves as the ultimate catalyst for Taylor's departure from Kentucky.

Jolene is a young woman from Pittman County who married Newt Harbine after getting pregnant. Her suffering during a violent domestic tragedy pushes Taylor to confront the grim realities of their hometown and cements her desire to leave.

Cynthia is a state social worker in Arizona who becomes involved in Turtle's case. She is a pragmatic professional who informs Taylor about the legal realities of guardianship, but she ultimately provides the crucial contact information needed to pursue formal arrangements.

Ivy is Lou Ann's mother, who travels from Kentucky to Arizona to meet her new grandson. Overbearing and quick to take control of Lou Ann's kitchen, she is kept in the dark about her daughter's failing marriage due to her critical, judgmental nature.

Granny Logan is Lou Ann's grandmother, a traditional woman who distrusts the hot Arizona climate. She brings a bottle of Tug Creek water from Kentucky to ensure her great-grandson can be baptized with water from his ancestral home.

An unnamed Cherokee woman who silently follows Taylor to her car and hands her an abused toddler. Claiming the child belonged to her dead sister, her desperate act to find safety for the girl dramatically alters the course of Taylor's life.