| | | | Part I August 1979 |
| | Huong | | A Vietnamese immigrant. |
| | Bui Thj Minh | Giang | Huong's friend. aka: Ba Giang. |
| | Tuan | | Huong's son. |
| | | | Part II |
| | | | Huong 1978 |
| | Father Table | | New Orleans' priest. |
| | Binh | | Huong's younger son. aka: Ben. |
| | Mr. | Minh | Father Table's acquaintance. |
| | Cong | | Huong's husband. |
| | Mrs. | Minh | Mr. Minh's wife. |
| | Arthur | Rimbaud | 19th century French poet. |
| | Paul | Verlaine | French poet. |
| | Théophile | Gautier | French writer. |
| | Guillaume | Apollinaire | French poet. |
| | Canh | | A fisherman. |
| | | | Tuan 1979 |
| | Truc | | One of the children Ba Giang's baby sit. |
| | Ngoc | | One of the children Ba Giang's baby sit. |
| | Dinh Fredric | | One of the children Ba Giang's baby sit. |
| | | | Huong 1980 |
| | Thanh | | Huong's acquaintance. |
| | Kim-Anh | | Huong's co-worker. |
| | Andrew | Jackson | Kim-Anh's acquaintance. |
| | Frank | | Kim-Anh's new acquaintance. |
| | | | Tuan 1981 |
| | Toby | Landowski | An English teacher. |
| | Donald | Richard | Tuan's new acquaintance. |
| | Juan | | Donald's friend. |
| | Mrs. | Trahan | The remedial English teacher. |
| | Ms. | Swason | Tuan's teacher. |
| | Co | Lam | Tuan's acquaintance. |
| | Tommy | | One of Donald's friends. |
| | Pete | | One of Donald's friends. |
| | Margaret | | Donald's stepmother. |
| | Tu-Hung | | Tuan's acquaintance. |
| | Donna | Summer | American singer-songwriter. |
| | Walter | | Donald's dog. |
| | | | Ben 1981 |
| | Adelaide | Toussaint | Ben's friend in school. aka: Addy. |
| | Shirley | Daigle | Ben's previous best friend. |
| | Mrs. | Brownworth | Addy's teacher. |
| | Shannon | | One of Addy's classmates. aka: Shan. |
| | Ashley | | One of Addy's classmates. |
| | Huy | | One of Nguyen's son. aka: Joseph. |
| | Father | Hieu | A priest. |
| | Bruce | Lee | Hong Kong-American actor, martial artist. |
| | | | Huong 1990 |
| | Vinh | | A car salesman. |
| | | | Ben 1990 |
| | Thao | | Tuan's girlfriend. |
| | Mrs. | Easton | A music teacher. |
| | | | Tuan 1991 |
| | Quang | | The King of the Southern Boyz's gang. |
| | Chu | Long | Quang's acquaintance. |
| | Ong | Nguyen | A fisherman. |
| | Wei | Huang | Owner of an Asian grocery store. |
| | | | Ben 1992 |
| | Howie | | Ben's new acquaintance. |
| | Charles | Dickens | English writer and social critic. |
| | John | Steinbeck | American writer. |
| | Jack | Kerouac | American writer. |
| | Anderson | | Howie's acquaintance. |
| | | | Part III August 1994 |
| | Georges | | Ben's acquaintance. |
| | Veronica | | Georges' acquaintance. |
| | Venus | Xtravaganza | American performer, escort, and dancer. |
| | Miss | Linh | Owner of a nail salon. |
| | | | Part IV |
| | | | Ben 1994 - 1998 |
| | Lars | Schreiber | A literature professor at UNO. |
| | Elaine | Schreiber | An art history professor. |
| | William | Faulkner | American writer. |
| | F. Scott | Fitzgerald | A short story writer and novelist. |
| | Gustave | Flaubert | French writer. |
| | William | Wordsworth | English Romantic poet. |
| | Samuel Taylor | Coleridge | British poet, literary critic and philosopher. |
| | Stella | | Lars Schreiber's student. |
| | Cardigan | | One of professor Lars Schreiber's students. |
| | Rings | | One of professor Lars Schreiber's students. |
| | Socks | | One of professor Lars Schreiber's students. |
| | Tati | | One of professor Lars Schreiber's students. |
| | Emily | Dickinson | American poet. |
| | Raymond | Carver | A writer of short stories and poet. |
| | Flannery | O'Connor | American novelist, short story writer. |
| | Bob | Dole | American politician. |
| | | | Huong 1998 |
| | Khánh | Ly | A Vietnamese-American singer. |
| | Toto | | Tuan's frog. |
| | | | Huong 1999 |
| | Lan | | Cong's second wife. |
| | | | Ben 2000 |
| | Michel | | A bookstore boy. |
| | Henri | Murger | A French novelist and poet. |
| | Odysseus | | Legendary Greek king of Ithaca. |
| | Mateo | | One of Michel's acquaintances. |
| | Sergei | | One of Michel's acquaintances. |
| | Édith | Piaf | French singer. |
| | | | Part V August 2005 |
| | Duong | | Ba Giang's cat. |
| | Sebastian | | Addy's acquaintance. |
| | Mr. | Franklin | Owner of a grocery store. |
| | Mr. | Nagin | New Orleans' mayor. |
