Home of the Brave

Ganwar is Kek’s older cousin. He was best friends with Kek’s older brother, Lual. Ganwar survived the raid on the camp but lost his hand in the attack. He nurses his grief, guilt, and resentment in his mother’s apartment, refusing to interact socially with others. Although Kek mostly enjoys his time at school, his happiness is neither shared nor appreciated by Ganwar. Where assimilation seems to be easy for Kek, Ganwar has significant difficulty in finding his place in America. His attitude is the antithesis to Kek’s open, engaging outlook, and Ganwar is annoyed by Kek’s enthusiasm for his new life. To Ganwar, America is a symbol of everything he has lost: family, country, and self. Further, Ganwar must deal with the difficulty of adjusting to life with only one hand, and the anxiety and frustration that this can elicit, at times uncontrollably. Ganwar gets in fights at school and resists every attempt to integrate into society. It is Kek who inspires Ganwar to begin changing his way of thinking, and with the help of Lou and Gol the cow, Ganwar makes some positive changes by the end of the novel. 

Kek’s aunt Nyatal reminds him of his lost mother. In Poems 13-16, Kek begins to adjust to life in America while living with his aunt Nyatal and cousin, but it is slow going and rife with memories of the past. Living with his aunt does nothing but remind Kek of his dead father and brother, and his missing mother. Nyatal is a woman who has endured the loss of her entire family, with the exception of her son, Ganwar—which is why she often reacts with pity or skepticism to Kek’s hopeful comments about his reunion with his mother. Nyatal struggled to assimilate into American culture, and she explains to Kek that America is a wonderful idea but a hard one to achieve. Nyatal watches in dismay as Ganwar sinks deeper into his depression and malaise. Despite these obstacles, Nyatal keeps going, determined to give her son and nephew a good home.

Hannah lives with her foster family in Kek’s apartment complex. When she meets Kek, she immediately senses a kindred spirit in him. Hannah’s life is difficult: Her mother is living with a drug addiction in a rehab facility, and Hannah hasn’t heard from her in months. She understands loss and how it feels to be an outsider—common ground on which Hannah and Kek build their friendship. Hannah finds joy in her friendship with Kek, both in teaching him about America and finding inspiration in his infectious wonder and hope. Hannah is a stalwart friend to Kek and helps in his assimilation during his first year in Minnesota. 

Dave, the “helping man,” is an employee of the Refugee Resettlement Center and greets Kek at the airport before taking him to Kek’s aunt’s home. Kek thinks of him as a wise and calm village leader, and at all times, Dave is honest with Kek, especially regarding Kek’s mother. Dave is a reassuring presence in Kek’s new life in America, and he is someone who cares enough about all refugees to help them find their way in their new country.

Gol the cow is owned by Lou, an older widow with a rundown farm. She is the living link between Kek’s past and present. Although Gol is old and swaybacked, she is a cow, a symbol of life among Kek’s people in Sudan. Gol provides a way for Kek to get a job, and in turn helps Ganwar begin to step out of his self-created shell. At the end of the novel, Gol’s fate is happily decided when the local zoo adopts her.

Lou is the owner of Gol and the dilapidated farm that Kek first sees and stops by on his trip home from the airport. A recent widow, Lou has fallen on hard times and cannot keep up the farm because of her physical injuries. She sees in Kek, and in his cousin, Ganwar, two lost souls who need a chance to find their place in a new country. This chance is something she can offer, and by doing so, she changes the lives of these two cousins forever.

Kek’s ESL teacher is Ms. Hernandez. As an immigrant herself, Ms. Hernandez empathizes with the difficulties and obstacles her students are tackling in a loud, overwhelming, and often confusing America. She offers Kek a living model of someone who, like him, came to America and made a life for herself. Ms. Hernandez also serves as a confidante for Kek, someone he can speak to when he is feeling upset and depressed about his lost family.

Mr. Franklin is the ESL assistant teacher, and he works with Ms. Hernandez to teach the class every day. Kek enjoys his sense of humor and easygoing manners. Mr. Franklin encourages Kek to name the cow and to embrace his new opportunities in America; he also gives Kek a favored nickname, “Cowboy.”