The Latehomecomer Character Analysis

Kao Kalia Yang

Kao is the author and narrator of The Latehomecomer. She documents her family’s life story, including her grandmother Youa’s life, and her parents Chue and Bee’s courtship and marriage. Kao is born… read analysis of Kao Kalia Yang

Youa

Youa is Bee, Uncle Chue, Nhia, and Eng’s mother, and Kao’s paternal grandmother. She was orphaned at a young age and forced to marry with an elderly widower. Youa… read analysis of Youa

Bee Yang

Bee is Kao, Dawb, Xue, Sheelue, and Shoually’s father; Chue’s husband; and Youa’s son. Bee meets Chue while they are teenagers, both of them having fled to the… read analysis of Bee Yang

Chue Moua

Chue is Kao, Dawb, Xue, Sheelue, and Shoually’s mother, and Bee’s wife. Chue and Bee meet in the Laotian jungle as teenagers while they’re fugitives fleeing the Hmong genocide… read analysis of Chue Moua

Dawb Yang

Dawb is Kao’s older sister; she’s born while Chue and Youa are being held captive by Pathet Lao soldiers. When the family flees captivity, treks through the jungle through monsoon rains, and crosses the… read analysis of Dawb Yang

Chue’s Mother

Chue’s mother is a fugitive who flees into the Laotian jungle in the aftermath of the Vietnam War. She showers her daughter Chue with love, and Chue is traumatized when they’re separated forever after Chue’s… read analysis of Chue’s Mother

Youa’s Husband

Youa’s husband dies before the story starts—although he’s dead, Youa often calls on his spirit to protect her family, emphasizing the significance of ancestors in Hmong spirituality. Toward the end of the book, Kao learns… read analysis of Youa’s Husband

Dying/Dead Woman

Kao develops deep anxiety after seeing a woman die in Phanat Nikhom Transition Camp. Kao believes that she’ll be haunted by the dead woman’s spirit unless she immigrates to the United States and can leave… read analysis of Dying/Dead Woman

Funeral Guide

The funeral guide is an elderly community member with knowledge of Hmong traditions. Kao’s family recruits him to lead Youa’s funeral rituals toward the end of the book. The funeral guide explains important aspects… read analysis of Funeral Guide

Uncle Chue

Uncle Chue is Bee’s older brother. He’s caught by Pathet Lao soldiers when he attempts to cross the Mekong Delta river into Thailand. Uncle Chue’s ordeal highlights the persecution faced by Hmong communities during… read analysis of Uncle Chue

Sheelue

Sheelue is Kao’s younger sister; she’s born four years after the family emigrates to the United States. Kao’s grandmother Youa is living across the country when Sheelue is born, and she feels disconnected from… read analysis of Sheelue

Romeo and Juliet

Romeo and Juliet are the titular star-crossed lovers in William Shakespeare’s play Romeo and Juliet. In ninth grade, Kao writes an essay arguing that Romeo and Juliet died before it was possible to assess… read analysis of Romeo and Juliet

Yer

Yer is a character in a traditional Hmong myth. In the myth, a tiger kidnaps Yer, and she ends up marrying the tiger and having three tiger babies. A young man in her village saves… read analysis of Yer

Tiger

The tiger is a character in a traditional Hmong myth. In the myth, the tiger kidnaps a beautiful young Hmong woman named Yer. Tigers have profound significance in Hmong folklore—and Hmong women joke that… read analysis of Tiger

Young Man

The young man is a character in a traditional Hmong myth. He saves a woman named Yer from the clutches of a tiger. Despite his actions, Yer is miserable when the man slaughters her three… read analysis of Young Man

Minor Characters

Nhia

Nhia is one of Bee’s brothers. He ends up in various Thai refugee camps and eventually immigrates to the United States.

Eng

Eng is one of Bee’s brothers. He delivers the eulogy at Youa’s funeral, in which he affirms her status as the family’s leader (despite the Hmong community’s patriarchal values).

Xue

Xue is Kao’s younger brother; he’s Chue’s first son after several miscarriages. Yang leverages Xue’s birth to emphasize the immense pressure on Hmong women like Chue to birth sons in their families.

Shoually

Shoually is Kao’s younger sister. She’s born in the United States in 1993. The name “Shoually” is an Americanized version of “Youa.”

Hmong Girl

The Hmong girl is another Hmong immigrant in Kao’s class at school who is much less shy than Kao. Kao resents the Hmong girl and feels jealous of how easily she fits in and makes friends at school.

Mrs. Gallentin

Mrs. Gallentin is Kao’s ninth grade English teacher. She realizes that Kao has an aptitude for writing after Kao writes an essay on the concept of love in William Shakespeare’s play Romeo and Juliet.

Boy

When Kao’s family moves to their second home in the United States, a Section-8 house, they’re haunted by the ghost of a little boy who previously died in the house. The little boy’s ghost spooks them, so they decide to move out and find another place to live.

Youa’s Sister

Youa’s older sister dies in childhood after being cursed by a witch. Kao learns about this story from Youa.

Witch

The witch is a woman who lives near Youa’s childhood village. Youa tells Kao that the witch cursed and killed Youa’s older sister.

Old Woman

Youa tells Kao a story about an old woman in her village who turned into a tiger.

The Latehomecomer Characters