Will Tweedy

Will Tweedy is the character from whose perspective this story is told. He is fourteen years old when the book begins. Will comes from a wealthy family and his background dictates that he should value certain people's friendship over others, but he doesn't naturally have this in him. He has a crush on a "linthead," Lightfoot McLendon. He likes the black cook's husband, and he likes Love Simpson, the woman who married a man only three weeks a widower. Will doesn't have natural tendencies to segregate himself, but he learns to through conscious thought of bringing shame to his family through bad associations.

Will struggles with many issues in this novel as he adjusts to the changes in his family. He likes a girl with whom he is not supposed to associate. He feels consistent guilt over having what others in town are lacking. Will's loyalties are...