Mary Ellen Todd is the main character and first-person narrator of the novel. She is eight years old when the novel starts but turns nine when she and her family are preparing for their journey west. Abbott Todd is Mary Ellen’s father. She refers to him as Father throughout her account. Angelina Todd is her stepmother and Father’s third wife. Mary Ellen’s biological mother died when she was nine months old. Father married two more times afterwards, as his second wife also passed away. Mary Ellen has two younger sisters: Louvina Todd and Cynthia Todd. They all have the same father, but all have different mothers. Of the Todd children, Mary Ellen is the most spirited and wild. Mother often scolds her for her tomboyish qualities, as she likes to run around in the sun without bonnets, ride horseback, and play with Father’s whip. Mary Ellen doesn’t always understand why Mother wants her to act like a lady, as she is more interested in adventure and excitement.

Mary Ellen experiences many losses throughout the novel that challenge her to grow up. She not only lost her mother when she was a baby, but she is forced to leave her paternal grandmother, or Grandma, when her family leaves Arkansas for

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