Finally Seen

Lina’s sister Millie is seven at the start of the novel. Millie was only two when her parents brought her with them to California, so she has no memories of China. She is an excitable young girl who helps with the bath bomb business, tries to become friends with the popular girl at school, and aims to increase her TikTok followers by posting dance videos of herself. She is happy to have Lina come live with the family but resists moving her stuffed animals to make room for Lina’s clothes. Early on, she tends to jump on Lina’s mistakes and correct Lina’s speech.

After a few weeks, Millie’s tone with Lina tempers, and she shows that she has a genuine desire to help Lina. She gives Lina credit when it is due for her art and email messages to Etsy customers, and she loves Lina’s graphic novel when she completes it. Millie is a complex, dynamic character because her maturity increases throughout the novel; for example, she chooses Lina and Carla instead of the popular Hazel for a sleepover occasion and finds a real friend in Mallory by the novel’s end.

Lina’s mother, Qian Gao, changed her name to Jane when she worked at the salon in California. Lina is surprised that she did this, but Mom explains the proprietor thought it would be easier for customers to use and remember. The name change represents the many changes Mom, her family members, and immigrants in general often make when arriving and trying to advance in a new location where language is one of many barriers in daily life. Mom was an engineer for Panda Amusement Park in China, but after Millie’s birth, she noticed a distinct decrease in work assignments, presumably because she had two children. As Mom explains, she wanted her girls to grow up in the US, where they would have more freedom to pursue their dreams.

Mom struggles with her lack of control in the US; she must wait for the green card for her husband to come through (his would be based on employment; she is currently unemployed) before getting her own (as the spouse of a green card holder). Ironically, the tables turn by the novel’s end and the current hopes of a green card rest on Qian’s “ability in business” (287)—which will be demonstrated only by success with the bath bombs. Mom experiences changes of heart in the novel as she flounders in her drive and ambition when acquiring the rent seems hopeless. With Lina’s counsel, though, Mom realizes that her own words about immigrants taking the challenging path are true; demonstrating the iron will she told Lina about after the ice cream shop incident, she rallies and gains both a business partner and enough money for rent. Mom is a complex, dynamic character who works hard to keep the family optimistic and motivated.

Dad had a student visa for his microbiology studies when he, Mom, and Millie first arrived in California, but after a prejudiced professor released him from his university job, he sought a green card through work at Pete Burton’s farm. His wait for the green card, which would allow him to stay permanently in the US, and his long hours for low pay comprise Dad’s ongoing conflicts in the novel. He is proud of Lina’s accomplishments, encourages Mom’s business, and supports the ideas of sustainable farming that Pete promotes. However, Pete’s dishonesty saddens and frustrates him, and he seeks new employment at the end of the story. Dad is a dynamic character as seen with his changed mindset regarding Pete, which is significant enough to forge his new path.

Finn is a kind, generous classmate to Lina who encourages her language-building skills and shares her passion for graphic novels. Finn struggles in his relationship with his father, with whom he would like to be close. Finn’s father is a sports fan and Finn does not enjoy sports; he and his father must work to rebuild their relationship after they exchange harsh words in the Bellagio hotel room. Though Finn is a well-adjusted student and fellow reader, Lina sees from his example that many peers have complex feelings about their families, making her grateful for the closeness she feels to her parents despite their years of separation. Finn is a steady source of support for Lina and a static character in the novel.

Carla lives with her mother in a tiny house with a gravity shower on Pete Burton’s farm. She and her mother volunteer their work on the farm in exchange for room and board on the property through a program called WWOOF. Carla knows and advises Lina that Pete does not honor his word, which foreshadows Pete’s dishonesty with the green card application. Carla and her mother plan to move off the farm by the novel’s end, symbolizing the start of a healthier grieving process for them. Carla is a static character and a consistently strong pillar of support to Lina.

With his gruff demeanor and dishonest methods, Pete serves as an antagonistic force in the novel, although his views on farming represent sustainability, good health, caretaking, and concern for future generations. As Dad tells Lina, “He’s a brilliant farmer. And a terrible employer. […] He can be both. People are complicated” (284). Pete had a loving wife, Virginia Burton, an author of books on progressive farming techniques; they divorced years before. Pete claims his farm must survive and prosper as it represents to him the baby girl that he and his wife lost in the backstory due to a miscarriage. Pete offers to apply for the Green Card if Dad stays on, but because Dad turns down the offer, it is not clear if Pete’s intentions are honest; consequently, whether Pete is static or dynamic is unclear.