Another Country characters

Appears from the start

A young Black jazz drummer in New York whose talent and charm have not protected him from poverty, racism, or a deepening personal crisis. Estranged from friends and haunted by the collapse of his relationship with Leona, he moves through the city in a state of exhaustion and despair.

Appears from the start

Rufus's closest white friend, an aspiring novelist from Brooklyn. He is affectionate and loyal but often fails to grasp the racial pressures shaping Rufus's life. His earnestness, sexual uncertainty, and wish to see himself as open-minded are repeatedly tested by the people closest to him.

Appears from the start

A white woman from the American South who came to New York after leaving a troubled marriage. Her intense relationship with Rufus crosses racial boundaries but is damaged by his jealousy, violence, and the hostility directed at them as a couple.

Appears from the start

A successful novelist and Vivaldo's older friend. Married to Cass and raising two sons, he has begun to enjoy the public rewards of his career, while his confidence and absorption in work leave strains in his household that he does not fully recognize.

Appears from the start

Richard's intelligent, perceptive wife and the mother of their children. She has supported his writing for years, but his recent success sharpens her sense that domestic life has narrowed her own possibilities.

First appears in chapter 3

Rufus's younger sister, a singer who meets his friends while grieving his death. Proud, wary, and sharply conscious of racial condescension, she is drawn to Vivaldo while questioning whether he can understand either her anger or her vulnerability.

First appears in chapter 4

An American actor returning to New York after years in France. He once moved in the same circle as Rufus, Vivaldo, Richard, and Cass. More at ease with his attraction to men than he was in youth, he comes home while waiting for his younger lover, Yves, to join him.

First appears in chapter 4

Eric's young French lover, first known through Eric's memories and their life together in the south of France. He plans to follow Eric to New York, making their separation a test of whether the security they found together can survive a new setting.

First appears in chapter 6

A successful, older television producer who takes an interest in Ida and can help her singing career. His access to money and influence places her ambitions within a relationship marked by unequal power.

Appears from the start

The young son of Richard and Cass, growing up amid tensions his parents try to keep outside the household.