Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close characters

Appears from the start

A precocious nine-year-old New Yorker whose father died in the September 11 attacks. Oskar invents devices, writes letters to famous people, collects facts, and carries a tambourine to steady himself. Grief brings panic, guilt, and what he calls heavy boots. After finding a mysterious key among his father's belongings, he turns the search for its lock into a private mission.

Also known as Dad

Appears from the start

Oskar's father, a jeweler who died on September 11. In Oskar's memories he is patient, playful, and intellectually curious, devising expeditions and puzzles that encourage his son to explore the city and draw his own conclusions.

Also known as Mom

Appears from the start

Oskar's mother, who is also grieving her husband's death while trying to care for an angry, secretive child. Oskar is troubled by her friendship with Ron and often mistakes her restraint and willingness to give him space for indifference.

Also known as Grandma

Appears from the start

Oskar's paternal grandmother, who lives in the apartment building across from his and communicates with him by telephone, notes, and signals through the windows. A survivor of wartime Dresden, she gives Oskar steady affection while carrying a long, painful history of her own.

Also known as Grandfather

First appears in chapter 2

Oskar's paternal grandfather, a survivor of the bombing of Dresden. Loss has gradually left him unable to speak, so he writes in notebooks and uses words tattooed on his hands for basic answers. His letters to the son he has never met recount the history behind his absence from the family.

First appears in chapter 3

A woman in Brooklyn whom Oskar visits because her surname matches the word written on the envelope that held the key. She listens kindly to his explanation but says she does not recognize it, becoming the first important stop in his long search.

Also known as Mr. Black

First appears in chapter 5

An elderly man who lives in Oskar's building and has compiled a biographical index of notable people. Though he has avoided the wider world for years and keeps his hearing aids switched off, Oskar's quest draws him into regular expeditions across New York.

First appears in chapter 6

Oskar's grandmother's older sister and the first great love of Thomas Schell Sr. Her death in the bombing of Dresden shapes the survivors' later marriage and the silences within the Schell family.

Appears from the start

A friend of Oskar's mother who lost his own family and spends time at the Schell apartment. Oskar resents his presence, treating him as an intruder, though Ron's companionship grows from shared grief rather than an attempt to replace Oskar's father.

First appears in chapter 15

Abby's former husband, who eventually explains the key's ordinary origin and its connection to Oskar's father. His own effort to settle his late father's affairs brings Oskar's elaborate search to its answer.