The Dead and the Gone

Briana, referred to as “Bri” throughout the novel, is 14 years old and already shows an affinity for religious ceremony and customs. She is very devout and leans on her faith during moments of stress and struggle. When life was normal, she, Mami, and Julie took care of all the household chores; when Mami never returns, she continues taking care of the cooking and cleaning in her place. She fulfills these responsibilities without complaint and is a peacemaker who often serves as a buffer between Alex and Julie, their younger sister. Further, Bri obeys Alex’s wishes, respecting him as the head of the household, at least until Papi returns.

Though capable and hardworking, Bri is also timid and becomes increasingly fearful as events related to the moon’s collision unfold. Despite her fear, she is still kind and compassionate, as illustrated when she comforts a girl who is traveling to the convent in upstate New York with her. While at the convent, Bri develops asthma, and her timidity worsens with her illness. However, while she understands the limits her asthma places on her, she still tries to help and support her brother and other sister.

By the end of the novel, all that has meaning in Bri’s life is her faith. Her health prevents her from going anywhere but church, leaving her with only her thoughts and prayers to keep her going. Bri also develops an inability to acknowledge her parents’ deaths, and this leads to her own death. Because Bri becomes more childlike and dependent on others, she is not a static character, yet the change she undergoes is—in contrast to Alex’s growing maturity—a one.

Julie, the youngest child of the Morales family, is a 12-year-old spitfire who encapsulates the stereotypical behaviors one expects from the baby of the family. Alex in particular feels that she constantly complains and is far more dramatic than he or Bri. Where Alex and Bri appreciate school for comparatively mature reasons (ambition and faith, respectively), Julie loves going to school because she can see her friends and it’s something to do. At the beginning of the book, she whines and throws tantrums when things don’t go her way, though she—like her siblings—will apologize for saying hurtful things, showing that Mami and Papi have built their family on a foundation of love.

Much like Alex, Julie is a dynamic character. She undergoes significant changes to her personality because of her struggle to survive. As food becomes scarce and Alex must get more and more creative to feed his sisters, Julie takes her cue from the situation, stops throwing tantrums, and adapts. For example, when Bri leaves for the convent, she bottles up her pain about losing her sister and adapts to the new role she must play in the home, which includes more cooking and cleaning. There are also many times that Julie is willing to sacrifice something of hers for someone else. As the siblings’ food situation fluctuates, she is quick to offer her suppers at home to Alex or Bri. She also discovers a love of gardening when Holy Angels plants a vegetable garden in Central Park to help provide food to the students. She continues to mature and develop as a character throughout the novel, entering her teens with grace and optimism and showing the type of woman she will become if given the chance.

The change in Julie’s relationship with her brother Alex is also worth noting. Julie is Carlos’s favorite sibling, and she feels the same way, but the events of the novel, leave Julie stuck with Alex. At the beginning, they constantly butt heads and can’t communicate well with each other. This leads to tension and conflict in an already difficult situation. Over time, however, the siblings strengthen their relationship and find mutual love and respect for each other.

At the beginning of the novel, Alex has no close friends despite his active participation in school clubs and leadership. However, by the end of the novel, Alex realizes that Kevin has become the closest friend he’s ever had. Kevin, with the temperament and appearance of a weasel, is a cunning yet cynical boy of Alex’s age. When Chris Flynn leaves for South Carolina, he tells Kevin, who has a unique gift for knowing things that are going to happen before anyone else does, to look out for Alex. At first, Alex thinks that Kevin is the worst companion to be left with.

It doesn’t take long for Alex to realize, however, that while Kevin might not be the typical wealthy student at a private academy, he has a strong sense of work and sacrifice. He first displays by taking Alex “body shopping” to help Alex trade valuables for food. When he introduces Alex to Harvey, Kevin vouches for Alex and ensures that Harvey won’t rip him off. Kevin and Alex continue body shopping together for months up until the day Kevin dies. He also provides the cake and icing for Julie’s surprise birthday party—no small sacrifice—and offers to stand in the food distribution line with Alex to get his family one more bag of food. Kevin is also a devoted son who trades all the valuables he finds for vodka for his mom, who is struggling with reality and copes by drinking. This shows that Kevin is a devoted son: Though he is realistic enough to know that his mom’s alcoholism is detrimental to the family, he feels obliged to help her, knowing that his father (who owns a trucking company) is more concerned with making money moving people out of New York than taking his family somewhere safe.

Alex owes a lot to Kevin and wouldn’t have survived as long had he not had Kevin’s help. Kevin is street-smart and more worldly than Alex, yet he shows unfailing loyalty in helping a classmate simply because Chris Flynn asked him to. One particularly telling moment occurs when Kevin gives Julie a tube of lipstick as a birthday present: This shows how thoughtful and caring he is despite his tough exterior. Julie cherishes the lipstick and takes it with her to Georgia, allowing Kevin’s legacy of kindness live on and reminding both Julie and Alex of an unlikely friend who saved their lives.

Father Franco, the priest at St. Margaret’s Church, is a compassionate man who does much to comfort and take care of his congregation. Alex often goes to him for help, support, or answers to questions, and Father Franco always does what he can. For example, he does his best to help Alex locate Papi (or at least find out what happened to his village), though he is never able to uncover any specific details. Likewise, Father Franco is the one who suggests sending Bri to the convent in upstate New York. He knew Bri’s personality and faith and thought it would not just be a good choice for her but also a relief for Alex. He continues helping Alex when and where he can, acting as a constant source of help throughout the novel.

Toward the end of the novel, Alex walks to St. Margaret’s and finds a note that the church has closed. He is not surprised, but he does not know what happens to Father Franco, making him simply one of the title’s “gone.”