Big Angel is the novel’s hero and the patriarch of the family. He has been diagnosed with cancer and has only a few days left to live. Though all the characters in the novel have their moments of significance, Big Angel is the focus of the book. The story of his death is also the story of his growth as a character, as he begins to question his desire to prove himself to white men at work and in the community. He acknowledges his own failings and confesses to the violence he has perpetrated on the people he loves. Big Angel also falls deeply into his own personal philosophies and memories, reliving his family’s journey from Mexico to America to shed light on the nuance of the immigrant experience.

Big Angel’s name connotes his symbolic significance as a guide for the family and a creator of miracles. Though Big Angel is as flawed as any other character in the book, his saving grace is his insistence on finding meaning in the world. As the hero, Big Angel goes on a hero’s journey that takes him back in time. His journey is circular, beginning and ending with his death. Along the way we see him falter and challenge himself before he ultimately accepts his life.