Nina

Nina is one of the novel's main characters. At the start of the novel she is nine years old. By the end of the novel, she is 16 years old. The novel therefore traces her coming of age story as she ventures out of childhood and into young adulthood.

Nina lives with her father in Texas. Her father owns a bookstore, which is located on the ground level of their building. Nina and her father live in the apartment on the building's second floor. Although Nina has a close relationship with her father, she often misses her mother. Her mother works as a translator, and is almost constantly away from home. Nina's loneliness is also amplified by her lack of friends. Though she does not complain about not having friends, the narrator consistently depicts Nina alone in her room. She spends most of her time either researching her family's...