Meet the Cast
Antonio "Tony" Juan Márez y Luna
Antonio Márez might be one of the most thoughtful young children in all of literature. Give this kid an Irish accent and he's pretty much a young Stephen Dedalus (minus the brothels and incredible...
Ultima (a.k.a. La Grande)
Guide Me, UltimaIn a lot of families, there's that one older lady who just seems like she knows more than everyone else. She's got wisdom, and who knows, maybe even a few supernatural gifts. You're...
Tenorio Trementina
Old-School Mustache-TwistingIn the old days, a cartoon Canadian Mountie named Dudley Do-Right fought week in and week out against the dastardly villain Snidely Whiplash. At times, Tenorio can be a...
Gabriel Márez and Maria Luna
Ah, parents. They can be the greatest thing in all the world, and they can also drive you utterly insane. Hey, it's what they do. It turns out that parents in a small New Mexico town during World W...
Antonio's Brothers: Andrew, Eugenio, and León
"'Your blood is tied to the blood of your brothers'" Ultima tells Antonio (15.45), which is why it's such a shame that Antonio never gets to form much of a bond with them. In his dreams and memorie...
Antonio's Sisters: Deborah and Theresa
As young boys grow up, having big sisters can one of the coolest things a guy could hope for. After all, big sisters can give great advice about girls and a million other things, and they can provi...
Antonio's Friends
Cico, Samuel, Florence, and JasónThese four guys get lumped together, because each in his own way shows Antonio that there might be something more out there for Antonio than Catholicism. Jasón ha...
The Murdered: Lupito and Narciso
Antonio witnesses four deaths when all is said and done, but two of them stand apart, because they're murders. Whether the death of Lupito, himself a murderer, at the hands of the town mob that inc...
Minor Characters
Antonio's UnclesAntonio's uncles—María's brothers—pop in and out throughout the novel to both remind Antonio of his heritage as a Luna farmer, and also just to be nice to the kind. They're kin...