The Overstory Characters

Vi is an Irish immigrant who marries Jørgen Hoel and moves to Iowa with him. Together they start a large family.

Eric is Frank Jr.’s son and Nick Hoel’s father. He maintains the project of photographing the Hoel chestnut tree every month. Eric dies in the family home on Christmas Eve, killed by an accumulation of toxic gas from the old propane heater along with his wife and mother.

Carmen is Mimi Ma’s younger sister, the middle child of the three Ma daughters. She grows up to study economics at Yale. Carmen and Mimi have a somewhat combative relationship, with Carmen seeming to resent her sister’s pragmatic engineering approach to life.

Amelia is Mimi Ma’s sister and the youngest of the three Ma daughters. She eventually gets a job in Colorado taking care of wounded wildlife. Amelia is much more patient and accommodating than her two sisters, and usually ends up acting as a peacekeeper between them.

Emmett is Adam Appich’s older brother. He is generally presented as a bully, and his tree is the ironwood. Emmett bullies Adam as a child, and in adulthood steals his inheritance from him.

Charles is Adam Appich’s younger brother, and the youngest Appich sibling. The tree that Leonard picks for him is the black walnut. Charles dies at some point during Adam’s adulthood.

Leonard Appich is Adam Appich’s father. He is an abusive and aggressive man who over the years breaks Adam’s wrist and his own wife’s elbow. Leonard starts the tradition of planting a tree for each of his children, beginning with Leigh “in a fit of fifties optimism.”

Adam Appich’s mother is unnamed in the novel. She generally doesn’t seem to understand Adam, and she’s implied to be an alcoholic and later addicted to codeine after her daughter Leigh’s death.

Ritu Mehta is Neelay’s mother, whom he calls “Moti.” She loves Neelay deeply, though she doesn’t understand his coding work. Ritu is presented as a traditional Indian woman who later becomes very concerned with finding a wife for Neelay.

Patricia’s mother is unnamed in the novel, and she is not nearly as close with Patricia as Bill is. After Bill’s death, Patricia’s mother remarries.

Davy is Olivia’s husband in college. He first introduces her to drugs, and their relationship consists mostly of getting high, having sex, and fighting. Olivia finalizes her divorce with Davy on the day that she is electrocuted.

Olivia’s father is unnamed in the novel. He is implied to be a wealthy and conservative man, and his relationship with Olivia is a tempestuous one.

Blackbeard is a member of the Life Defense Force who goes out on raids to sabotage logging equipment.

Chris is a reporter who calls Neelay for an interview. He admits that he is obsessed with playing Mastery and questions Neelay about the game and his personal life. Neelay feels attracted to Chris, but he must settle for knowing that the code he wrote has changed Chris’s brain.

Professor Van Dijk is Adam’s advisor at graduate school. He is very attracted to her and tries to flirt with her during their meetings. She is the impetus for Adam beginning his study researching the psychological profiles of environmental activists.

Loki is a member of the Life Defense Force who first brings Nick and Olivia to Mimas, and sometimes brings them supplies as their stay lengthens. He also sneaks Adam in when he, too, ascends the tree.

An unnamed judge presides over a case in which Patricia is called as an expert witness. The judge reminds Patricia of her father, Bill, and he seems genuinely interested in what she has to say about trees.

Buzzard is one of the activist camped out in Mimas before being replaced by Nick and Olivia.

Sparks is the other activist camped out in Mimas before being replaced by Nick and Olivia.

Sheriff Sanders is the policeman overseeing the response to the Life Defense Force’s action in the logging company’s headquarters building. He orders his officers to wipe pepper spray into the eyes of the protesters—including Douglas and Mimi—when they refuse to move.

Brendan Smith is a man whom Mimi’s company hired to make sure she leaves peacefully after she is fired. Mimi is offended by his presence.

Mr. Siang is an art appraiser who buys the arhat scroll from Mimi. First he tries to undersell her, but she is quickly able to see through him and make a large amount of money from the deal.

Elizeu is a rubber tapper in Brazil and one of Patricia’s guides on her trip to the Amazon.

Elvis Antônio is a rubber tapper in Brazil and one of Patricia’s guides on her trip to the Amazon.

Stephanie is one of Mimi’s clients at her therapy practice in San Francisco. She feels herself deeply changed by Mimi’s gaze, and tries to remember all that she learned after leaving the office and returning to the outside world.

Kaltov is one of Neelay’s top five project managers at Sempervirens. He votes against Neelay’s idea for a new, nature-based game.

Rasha is one of Neelay’s top five project managers at Sempervirens. He votes against Neelay’s idea for a new, nature-based game.

Robinson is one of Neelay’s top five project managers at Sempervirens. He votes against Neelay’s idea for a new, nature-based game.

Nguyen is one of Neelay’s top five project managers at Sempervirens. He votes against Neelay’s idea for a new, nature-based game.

Boehm is one of Neelay’s top five project managers at Sempervirens. He votes against Neelay’s idea for a new, nature-based game.

Alena is a young Eastern-European woman backpacking through America. She meets Douglas and first tries to seduce him, but she then accepts his offer of his room for the night. She finds his journal, reads it, and later reports Douglas to the police.

Charlie is Adam and Lois’s young son. A very practical and seemingly uncreative boy, he wants to be a banker when he grows up. Because of this, Adam feels disconnected from Charlie, but he still loves his son and wants to better understand him.

An unnamed Native American man in a red plaid coat helps Nick with his last sculpture: the word “STILL” made from fallen logs and designed to be seen from space. The man represents the healthy and symbiotic relationship with nature that Powers advocates for.