Character Analysis
Poor Lester has got his work cut out for him. Not only does he have a horrible job working for his ex-girlfriend Carlene, he's also got Carlene and his awful mother's voice telling him he's the worst at everything—from inside his head. But just because he's a kind of tragic figure, doesn't mean that Lester doesn't bring lots of good to our story. Heck, we'd even go so far as to say that we need him in this book. Literally. He's the guy who drives the bus, after all.
The Voice of Reason
Mibs spends a lot of the book listening to the voices inside Lester's head—that would be his ex and his mother talking—and they call him the worst kinds of names. And the thing is that though they're inside his head, it doesn't seem to occur to Lester to evict these nasty ladies. He is willing to live a life filled with the angry words of others, constantly harping on him and keeping him down. If he weren't, it would be his own voice running the show inside his mind.
It isn't just his mom and Carlene (the ex) who trample on Lester, though, and he blindly allows a bunch of kids to hitch a ride on his bus with barely a fight on his end. Pro tip: If you find a bunch of strangers hanging out in the back of your vehicle, kick them out… or at least make them give you some gas money.
It's only once Lester meets Lill and starts to fall in love with her that things start to turn around for him. He listens to her advice, steals a pie, and starts to actually make some bible sales. Lill likes Lester and believes in him, which slowly builds up his self-esteem. And once that happens, we finally hear Lester's own voice inside his head and no one else's—Lester's taken the wheel.
Lester's Timeline