When the Emperor Was Divine characters

Appears from the start

A Japanese American woman living in Berkeley with her two children. Her husband has already been taken away by federal agents when she sees the notice ordering the family to report for removal. She responds with controlled efficiency, packing what they may carry and disposing of what must be left behind while concealing much of her fear from the children.

Appears from the start

The woman's school-age daughter, observant and independent. She notices both the practical details of the family's preparations and the strangeness of having their ordinary Berkeley life abruptly dismantled by an official order.

Appears from the start

The woman's younger child. He tries to understand why his father disappeared and why the family must leave home, holding on to small routines and memories while the adults give him few complete explanations.

Appears from the start

The children's Japanese-born father, absent from the house after the FBI takes him away in his slippers. Before his arrest he was a familiar suburban parent who wore suits, tended the garden, and provided for his family. His uncertain location dominates the family's thoughts as they prepare to leave.

Appears from the start

The family's aging white dog. Because the evacuation rules make it impossible to take him and the woman cannot find him another home, he becomes one of the most painful losses concealed inside her methodical preparations.

Appears from the start

A local shopkeeper who treats the woman with quiet decency as the exclusion order takes effect. He gives her a practical token of goodwill, standing out against the suspicion and indifference that now surround the family.