character+analysis

__Jing-Mei Woo__ Esentially, Jing-Mei is the main character of the book, with the novel beginning and ending with her story. She is trying her hardest to quiet the "Chinese" that is inside her, and just wants to be an American girl (she usually goes by her American name, "June"), with no weird culture things or anything of that sort. But no matter what she does, she cannot escape her herritage, and she serves as the bridge between the Chinese culture and the American culture within her family and friends. She's scared of becoming "too Chinese" but also recognizes that she is beginning to forget her herritage and who she really is. To understand her mother, with whom she did not have the best relationship, she must first understand where she comes from.

__Waverly Jong__ Waverly at first seems like a really self-centered person. She's always in competition with Jing-Mei and tries to humiliate her in every way she can, such as when they were young at the piano recital, and when they are older at the New Year's dinner. Her mother, Lindo, taught her the art of "invisible strength" which she used as a chess player when she was a little girl and now applies it to her everyday life. However, no matter the amount of invisible strength she seems to posses, she still has a ton of insecurties and fears, like with her fiance, Rich. She is scared to death that her mother doesn't approve of him, and also second-guesses herself as to whether or not she should be with him at all, for the fact that he is white, and she fears he might make her lose her sense of self in her Chinese herritage.

__Lena St. Clair__ Lena is a very shy and quiet individual. She can't speak up for herself, and therefore hardly ever finds what she is truly looking for. Her husband, Harold, seems to walk all over her, and even makes them hold seperate bank accounts and write down all their debts to eachother. Now, Harold isn't necessarily a bad person, Lena is just an extremely meek and weak person and therefore very easy to walk over. She thinks that everything is left up to fate, but she needs to realize that she is in control of her OWN destiny, that by perhaps expressing her thoughts and love for those around her, that she might actually find what she is truly looking for.