| Aunt | Betty | J.D.'s great aunt. Stayed in Ohio. |
| Bev | Blanton | J.D.'s mother. |
| Gary | Blanton | Mamaw's child. Moved to Indiana. |
| Goldie | Blanton | Papaw's mother. |
| Hattie | Blanton | Mamaw Blanton's mother. |
| Jimmy | Blanton | J.D.'s uncle. Went to California. |
| Lori | Blanton | J.D.'s aunt. |
| Mamaw | Blanton | J.D.'s great grandmother. |
| Paul | Blanton | Mamaw's child. Moved to Indiana. |
| Don | Bowman | J.D.'s father. His mother's second husband. |
| Amy | Chua | Yale law professor. |
| Uncle | David | J.D.'s uncle in Kentucky. |
| Uncle | Gary | J.D.'s uncle in Kentucky. Moved to Indiana. |
| Bob | Hamel | J.D.'s stepfather and legal father. |
| Shawn | Haney | J.D.'s Marine boss. |
| Donald | Ison | Protestant preacher in Jackson, Kentucky. |
| Jennifer | McGuffey | High School teacher. |
| Uncle | Pet | J.D.'s uncle in Kentucky. aka: Pet Blanton. |
| Big | Red | Truck driver. |
| Jane | Rex | Works at Appalachian State University. |
| Aunt | Rose | J.D.'s great aunt. Stayed in Ohio. |
| Bob | Schuler | Ohio State Senator. J.D. worked for him. |
| Ron | Selby | High School math teacher. |
| Bonnie | South | Mamaw's friend in Kentucky. |
| Pap | Taulbee | J.D.'s relative. |
| Uncle | Teaberry | J.D.'s uncle in Kentucky. Moved to Ohio. |
| J.D. | Vance | The author. |
| Jim | Vance | J.D.'s grandfather. aka: James Lee Vance. |
| Lindsay | Vance | J.D.'s half sister. Married name: Lindsay Lewis. |
| Ryan | White | Boy with HIV at J.D.'s school. |
| Amber | | J.D.'s cousin. |
| Bob | | J.D.'s mother's male friend. |
| Brian | | J.D.'s acquaintance. |
| Cary | | J.D.'s sibling. |
| Chelsea | | J.D.'s sibling. |
| Chip | | Police officer. An alcoholic. |
| Chip | | J.D.'s mother's male friend. |
| Gail | | J.D.'s cousin. |
| Jamil | | J.D.'s classmate at Yale Law School. |
| Kameron | | Lindsay's son. |
| Ken | | Mamaw's friend. |
| Ken | | One of J.D.'s mother's husbands. |
| Mamaw | | J.D.'s grandmother. |
| Matt | | J.D.'s mother's male friend. |
| Meghan | | Lindsay's child. |
| Mike | | J.D.'s cousin. |
| Rachael | | J.D.'s female cousin. A Marine Corps veteran. |
| Rick | | J.D.'s second cousin. |
| Steve | | Mamaw's male friend. |
| Steve | | J.D.'s mother's male friend. |
| Tammy | | J.D.'s mother's gay friend. |
| Usha | | J.D.'s girlfriend at Yale. Future wife. |
