Honors American Lit. Book Reviews

I AM NOT YOUR PERFECT MEXICAN DAUGHTER CHARACTER REVIEW: Who is Julia?

Julia is the main character of the story, a teenage girl who has just lost her sister in a horrific accident.

Who is Olga?

Olga is Julia’s sister, a victim of a horrific accident who’s funeral is held at the very beginning of the story.

Who is Amá?

Amá is Julia and Olga’s mother.

Who is Apá?

Apá is Julia and Olga’s father.

Who is Lorena?

Lorena is Julia’s best friend, another teenage girl who goes to the same school as Julia.

Who is Connor?

Connor is Julia’s first actual boyfriend, the teenage boy to whom she loses her virginity.

Who is Juanga?

Juanga is a friend of Lorena’s, and he is openly gay and attends the same school as Julia. Julia does not get along with Juanga at first, but nearing the end they become good friends.

Who is Mr. Ingman?

Mr. Ingman is Julia’s senior-year english teacher, and he is supportive and encouraging of her dreams to get into NYU and helps her along the way with her application process.

Who is Dr. Castillo?

Dr. Castillo was the married man that Julia’s late sister, Olga, was having an affair with before she died. Olga was pregnant with his baby, and they worked in the same office.

Who is Angie?

Angie was Olga’s best friend before she died, and she isn’t very helpful or kind to Julia during her search for answers. Angie knew about Olga’s affair and pregnancy and worked to keep it a secret from Julia.

Who is Dr. Cooke?

Dr. Cooke was Julia’s pyschiatrist/therapist whom Julia looks up to in a sense. Dr. Cooke is the first person that Julia talks to about her feelings, and Dr. Cooke pushes Julia to become a better person.

Who is Tasha?

Tasha was Julia’s only friend at her outpatient program, an anorexic teenage girl.

Who is Tia Milagros?

One of Julia’s aunts, Milagros is a gossiper who makes rude, passive-aggressive remarks that Julia does not like.

Who is Mamá Jacinta?

Julia’s grandmother. Mamá Jacinta lives in Los Ojos and takes good care of Julia when she visits, making sure she’s always fed and surrounded by family that loves and cares for her.

Who is Esteban?

Esteban is a handsome young man who lives in Los Ojos, and when Julia goes to visit, she develops a sort of crush on him that she feels bad about because of her relationship with Connor.

Who is Pasqual?

Pasqual is one of Julia’s school classmates, and on their school trip he gives Julia a backhanded compliment regarding her appearance.

THEIR EYES WERE WATCHING GOD CHARACTER REVIEW: Who is Janie?

Janie is both the main character and narrator of the story, and she comes from mixed-race origin. Janie garners much attention for her lighter skin and her physical beauty, but behind any of that she is independent, determined, and confident.

Who is Nanny?

Nanny is Janie’s grandmother, a former slave. She focuses on how important financial security and protection is for women, (specifically black women), and believes that these things can only be achieved through marriage.

Who is Leafy?

Leafy is Janie’s mother, a woman that Janie never met. She is a product of Nanny and Nanny’s slave master, who raped Nanny. Leafy is then raped herself by her school teacher, resulting in her pregnancy with Janie. Leafy runs away after Janie is born, leaving Nanny to take care of her.

Who is Marse Robert?

The white slave master who enslaved Nanny and ended up abusing her.

Who is Johnny Taylor?

Janie’s first kiss at the age of sixteen, which was followed by her sexual awakening underneath the pear tree.

Who is Pheoby?

Pheoby is Janie’s closest friend in Eatonville, defending Janie against the ruthless gossip amongst the townspeople.

Who is Logan Killicks?

Janie’s first husband, arranged by her grandmother, Nanny. The marriage is loveless and teaches Janie that being secure does not equal romance.

Who is Joe Starks (Jody)?

Janie’s second husband. She runs off on Logan to marry Joe and moves to Eatonville with him, attracted to his charm and charisma.

Who is Matt Bonner?

The owner of the mule that is initially the focus of the townspeople’s jokes. After Janie sympathizes with the sad mule, Joe purchases it and the mule becomes Eatonville’s mascot.

Who is Tea Cake?

Janie’s third (and final) husband, a man much younger than Janie. Tea Cake is Janie’s only true love out of her three husbands, and he treats Janie with far more respect than Joe or Logan did.

Who is Nunkie?

A young, chunky girl who works alongside Tea Cake on the fields in the muck. One day, Janie discovers her and Tea Cake playfully wrestling on the ground with one another and accuses him of cheating.

Who is Mrs. Turner?

A colorist woman who attempts to befriend Janie and get her to leave Tea Cake for her brother, who has lighter skin and is more intelligent than Tea Cake.

Who is Mrs. Turner’s brother?

A lighter skinned, more intelligent man than Tea Cake whom Mrs. Turner tries to get Janie to leave Tea Cake for.

Who is Mrs. Tony?

A woman who comes into Joe’s store to beg for food, claiming that her husband does not feed her or provide for their family. She is mocked by the men on the porch, who claim that if their wives embarrassed them like that, they would kill or beat her.

Who is Dr. Simmons?

The sympathetic white doctor who works in the Everglades and diagnoses Tea Cake with rabies after he had been bitten by a dog during the hurricane.

NATIVE AMERICAN SHORT STORIES CHARACTER REVIEW: Who is the narrator of “Museum Indians”?

The narrator is the author herself, Susan Power. The narrator is shy, timid, and wants to stay in Chicago.

Who is the narrator’s mother in “Museum Indians”?

She is a strong, outspoken woman who misses her home on the reservation. She advocates for an offensive statue portraying Native Americans in a negative light to be taken out of a museum. She is Susan Power’s actual mother.

Who is the narrator’s great-grandmother in “Museum Indians”?

Her dress was put on display in a museum without the family’s permission. The dress represents native traditions.

Who is Christie in "A Red Girl’s Reasoning”?

She is a mixed woman (white father, native mother) who is strong, leaving her husband out of respect for herself.

Who is Charlie in “A Red Girl’s Reasoning”?

Christie’s husband, a white man who treats Christie like an object. He disrespects native traditions.

Who is Joe in “A Red Girl’s Reasoning”?

Charlie’s brother who lives with Charlie and Christie. He breaks up an intense argument between Christie and Charlie, and before leaving Charlie, Christie kisses his head because he has similar hair to Charlie.

Who is Mrs. Stuart in “A Red Girl’s Reasoning”?

A wealthy white woman who asks questions about Christie’s parents’ marriage, which sparked the argument between Christie and Charlie.

Who is Major Miles in “Train Time”?

Major Miles is a white man who has a savior complex, believes that he is “doing a good thing” by rounding up twenty-five Native American children from the local reservation and sending them by train to an off-reservation boarding school.

Who is Eneas in “Train Time”?

Eneas, also known as “little Eneas” is a young boy who lives with his grandparents, who are both sick with pneumonia. Major Miles feels an obligation to “help” Eneas and send him to the boarding school though he does not want to go.

Who is Eneas’ grandfather in “Train Time”?

A wise man who is sick with pneumonia, teaching Eneas about native traditions.

Who is the narrator in “The Soft Hearted Sioux”?

He leaves when he is 16 and goes off to a boarding school for 9 years. He comes back to find that his father is sick and dying, and he becomes a Christian missionary who tries to convert the people in his father’s village.

Who is the narrator’s father in “The Soft Hearted Sioux”?

Expects for his son to follow tradition, becomes deathly sick and ends up dying.

Who is the medicine man in “The Soft Hearted Sioux”?

The tribe’s traditional medicine man who is attempting to heal the narrator’s father using customary rituals. Because of his newfound Christianity, the narrator turns the medicine man away, and the medicine man ends up leading the tribespeople in shunning the narrator.

Who is Father Paul in “The Man to Send Rain Clouds”?

The local Catholic Priest.

Who is Leon in “The Man to Send Rain Clouds”?

A Native man who prepares the funeral rituals for his grandfather Teofilo in hopes that his death will bring much needed rain to the community.

Who is Teofilo in “The Man to Send Rain Clouds”?

The deceased Pueblo elder who is found deceased by his grandsons.

Who is Thomas in “Crow’s Sun”?

An 18 year old black man, Thomas is in the Navy and is being sentenced to spending time in the Brig because he got into a fight with a couple of other guys. They lied and made up stories about him, and it was said that Thomas would be burned at the stake.

Who is Cook in “Crow’s Sun”?

Warns Thomas about the Brig and gives him tips on how to survive despite not liking Thomas.

Who is The Sergeant in “Crow’s Sun”?

A highly racist and disrespectful white man who uses his position to bully Thomas while he is in the Brig.

Who is the narrator in “Borders”?

A young Blackfoot boy who misses his sister, Laetitia, who moved away. The story documents he and his mother’s border-crossing journey to visit Laetitia.

Who is Laetitia in “Borders”?

Laetitia moves to Salt Lake City without her mother’s permission, inspired by her ex-boyfriend.

Who is the narrator’s mother in “Borders”?

A Blackfoot woman who refuses to call herself Canadian or American in order to cross the border. Her refusal causes her and the narrator to get stuck between the American and Canadian border for three nights.

Who is Mel in “Borders”?

Sympathetic and supportive store manager who at first is dismissive of the mother and son before understanding their situation. Provides them with food, encourages the mother to not give up on her fight, and even calls the mother an “inspiration”.