Native Speaker Characters

Henry Park

Henry Park, a Korean American, is the narrator and protagonist. As the novel opens, his marriage is on the rocks after the death of his son, and his career as a private spy-for-hire is in jeopardy. As he begins a new assignment, he is forced to confront issues of culture, identity and loyalty. Through examining his past, he realizes that his ability to conceal his emotions, valued in Korean culture and by his parents, is a barrier between him and Lelia, his non-Korean wife. To rebuild his marriage, he must come to terms with his identity and learn to share more of himself with her.

Lelia

Lelia is Henry Park’s wife. She is a speech therapist. After their son, Mitt, died, their marriage began to decay. As the novel opens, she has separated from Henry. As Henry sorts out his own identity, he also works to rebuild his life with Lelia.

Mitt

Mitt is the young son of Lelia and Henry Park and, until his sudden death, was a joy and a bond between them. He is accidentally killed at his own birthday party. The different ways in which Henry and Lelia go through the grieving process after this event create an emotional gulf between them.

Henry’s father

Henry Park’s father had studied to be an engineer back in Korea, yet when he came to the United States, he became a grocer. Henry’s father keeps a tight rein on his emotions, something Henry admires and, in large part, emulates. Despite finding financial success in American society, Henry’s father stays tightly aligned with Korean cultural values.

John Kwang

John Kwang is a Korean American politician and Henry Park’s first assignment after failing badly in his work spying on therapist Emile Luzan. Kwang is a man on the rise in politics, and he becomes a father figure to Henry. Kwang’s public face is polished and perfect, but in private he reveals a darker side. His career is ruined by his involvement with a money club that helps undocumented immigrants.

Henry’s mother

Henry Park’s mother dies of cancer when he is 10 years old, but he still has strong memories of her. She was committed to being a supportive wife to her husband, acting as a welcoming hostess when he brought his friends to the house. She believed that suffering and sacrifice were hallmarks of a life well lived according to Korean values.

Jack Kalantzakos

Jack Kalantzakos is a Greek American employed by the same company as Henry Park. He is a friend to Henry, giving him relationship advice and helping him get his bearings after Henry fails in his assignment spying on Emile Luzan.

Housekeeper

After Henry Park’s mother dies, his father brings an anonymous Korean woman into the household to cook, clean and take care of Henry. She interacts very little with Henry or anyone else, and she resents and rejects Lelia’s friendly overtures.

Eduardo Fermin

Eduardo Fermin is one of John Kwang’s favorite volunteers, but he turns out to be a spy like Henry Park, passing information on Kwang to Glimmer & Company. He is killed in a fire, and his death is the beginning of the political end for Kwang.

Emile Luzan

Emile Luzan is a Filipino psychoanalyst Henry is assigned to spy on. However, Henry ends up treating Emile as a real therapist, compromising the operation. Shortly after Henry’s company forces him to quit therapy, Luzan has a fatal “accident.”

Dennis Hoagland

Dennis Hoagland is Henry Park’s boss at Glimmer & Company, a company that specializes in spying on members of various ethnic groups on behalf of corporate clients and political groups. He pressures Henry to come up with concrete information on Kwang.

Janice Pawlowsky

Janice Pawlowsky is the young leader of the media advance team for John Kwang’s political campaign. Forceful and open, she tells Henry about dating a Korean man and finding him emotionally cold.

Sherrie Chin-Watt

Sherrie Chin-Watt is Kwang’s PR person. Henry learns that she and Kwang are having an affair, though both are married.

Molly

Molly is the friend with whom Lelia stays when she and Henry separate. Molly likes Henry, however, and helps him see and talk to Lelia.

Stew

Stew is Lelia’s father, a heavy drinker, and a man who speaks his mind. At first, he does not like Henry or the idea of his daughter marrying a Korean American. Later he comes to appreciate Henry and sees his restraint as an asset, not a drawback.