A Down Home Meal for These Difficult Times Characters

Saba

Saba is the protagonist of "The Suitcase." She was born in Ethiopia but raised in the United States. At the age of twenty, she decides to return to Ethiopia. She is described as being thoughtful and courteous, as she treats her elders with a great deal of respect and care.

Mekonnen

Mekonnen is the main character in "Mekonnen aka Mack aka Huey Freakin' Newton." He is a sixth grader who becomes part of a Black student group focused on learning about the history of Black culture in America. He is a passionate young man who wants to develop a better understanding of how to combat the prejudice he encounters in everyday life.

Getu

Getu is the protagonist of the story "The Street Sweep." He grows up very poor but hopes to improve his family's financial situation. He meets an NGO staffer who vaguely promises to help him. Getu is idealistic and somewhat naive, as he sincerely believes everything the staffer says, despite his mother's warnings about people from higher classes being dishonest.

The Stranger

The stranger appears in "The Kind Stranger." He is described as an old man who speaks with an unsettling intensity. He is haunted by the past, particularly the torture he suffered during Ethiopia's Derg period and the death of a young woman.

Yohannes

Yohannes is a bright young engineer and the protagonist of the story "Medallion." He is honest and studious. His life takes a turn for the worse when a taxi driver named Bobby gets involved in his life and convinces him to work as a cab driver. Little by little, his life slips away from him, as he leaves school and is swindled out of his wages by Bobby.

Paulos

Paulos is an engineer residing in Texas. While deceased at the story's beginning, he is the central character in "The Elders." He is described as having been generous with the people in his community and an exceptionally hard worker. He was killed in a terrible hate crime.

Johannes Weill

Johannes Weill is an older German man who befriends the narrator of "The Wall" when the narrator is a young boy. He helps him with his English and the two gradually develop a close bond. He is a warm and thoughtful man who tries to help the narrator to the best of his abilities. It is suggested that Johannes is traumatized by his memories of World War II and the Holocaust.

Jazarah

Jazarah is an Ethiopian woman residing in New York in the collection's titular story. She befriends another woman named Yeshi and they bond over their shared experience of immigration and their eventual affection for The Good Housekeeping Illustrated Cookbook. Together they open a restaurant. Jazarah is depicted as resourceful.

Yeshi

Yeshi is Jazarah's friend in "A Down Home Meal for These Difficult Times" who eventually starts a restaurant with her. She is described as being resilient.