| A | B |
|---|
| Esperanza Cordero | narrator and central character |
| Nenny (Magdalena) | Esperanza's younger sister |
| Carlos and Kiki | Esperanza's two younger brothers |
| Cathy | neighbor girl. |
| Edna | woman who owns and lives in the apartment building next door |
| Edna | the mother of Ruthie, a childlike woman |
| Lucy and Rachel | Two girls who live across the street |
| Meme Ortiz | boy who moves into Cathy's house. |
| Marin | neighborhood girl, older than Esperanza |
| The Vargas family | Rosa and her children |
| Alicia | university student & becomes a friend to Esperanza |
| Darius | neighborhood boy. |
| Sister Superior | Esperanza's school principal. |
| Aunt Lupe (Guadalupe) | One of Esperanza's aunts |
| Elenita | A witch woman. |
| Geraldo | man Marin meets at a dance. |
| Earl | man who lives in Edna's basement apartment |
| Sire | boy Esperanza is attracted to |
| Mamacita | woman who never leaves her apartment |
| Rafaela | Another married neighborhood woman |
| Sally | friend of Esperanza's. |
| Minerva | young woman whose husband beats her |
| The three sisters | Lucy and Rachel's great-aunts |
