Ross Gay

Ross is the author, main character, and narrator of The Book of Delights. He is in his early forties and is a professional writer and university teacher. Ross is a vegetarian and readers can glean from his essays that he supports social justice initiatives such as racial and economic equality. Ross is male, cisgender, and black which are all aspects of his identity that inform his experiences in the world. Ross grew up in relative poverty and was born to interracial parents in 1974.

Ross is very fond of gardening and much of the delight he finds in his everyday life comes from spending time in gardens or among nature. He gets satisfaction out of figuring things out and is an advocate for innovation. Ross is a very self-aware person which readers can glean in Essay #30 when he writes about how he has worked to combat his...