Mama

Sister and Stella-Rondo's mother, Mama, is asked to mediate between her two daughters but, according to Sister, always ends up taking Stella- Rondo's side. In particular, she chooses not to question Stella-Rondo when she says that Shirley T. is adopted. This bothers Sister, who sees it as evidence of her mother's favoritism toward Stella- Rondo and a willful denial of unpleasant or diffi- cult facts.

Papa-Daddy

Papa-Daddy is Sister and Stella-Rondo's maternal grandfather and the patriarch of the household. By the standards of the rural community where he lives, he a rich man and he has gotten Sister her job as local postmistress, using sway that he aggrandizes as "my influence with the government." Papa-Daddy becomes the first family member who Stella-Rondo succeeds in turning against Sister when he accepts Stella-Rondo's story that Sister thinks he should cut off his very long beard, which is to him a...