Tamim Ansary
This Afghan-American is the author and the center of these non-fiction stories about his life, about the tension of his identity. He feels that perhaps he doesn't fit in in his culture, because his family is Muslim and his culture prizes things differently than American culture does, so he feels like he is betraying himself no matter which direction he picks. When the terrorist attacks happen on September 11, 2001, his life is flipped on its head—suddenly, he is not only ostracized; he is treated with contempt.
The Islamic terrorists
Tamim discusses the ways that terrorist attacks shaped the social perception of his own community. After Al-Qaeda's attack on New York City, everyone treats Tamim as if he is secretly a spy for the Islamic extremists. In other words, the terrorists make everyone scared not only of terrorists, but of Muslims. Tamim tries to live a normal life, but he is constantly treated as if he were in Al-Qaeda, just because of his appearance.
The Christian Americans
Ansary's story mentions Christian feedback to his original email, where he says that many Christians were extraordinarily supportive of him, although many were not, but Ansary includes them in the book because their honesty and sincerity were proof to him that taking the time to express himself was effective; the perceived boundary that he felt between him and the Christians was not there, although a few people were critical.
