Rosie is the novel’s protagonist and its narrator. She narrates the story in the past tense from later in life, allowing the narrative to comment on events and her younger self from a distance, and to prefigure the future. 

Rosie is nearly 14. She describes herself as red-haired, freckled, and spunky, although she admits to being timid at times, and the bustling world’s fair is overwhelming for her at first. She tries to restrain her spunky spirit while in Chicago and her impetuous behavior—while well-intentioned—leads to scrapes, such as when she introduces her aunt to the city’s leading society lady. The novel follows Rosie’s character development as a coming-of-age story and the young-adult lessons of the three major themes are mostly established through her character’s narrative arc.

Lottie is Rosie’s sister. At 17, she is pretty and strong-minded. At home, she helps her mother around the farm and is being courted by a local hired man named Everett. Before the sisters go to Chicago, Lottie’s situation is an indication of the life Rosie can expect as she gets older—little education, and early marriage, and domestic duties.