Luke
Luke is a twelve-year-old boy and a third child in a society that only allows families to have two children. He obediently hides when he's told until he reaches the age of twelve, and loses access to the woods near his house but gains a better understanding of his predicament. He is generally reserved, but he shows enormous courage when he makes contact with the third child of another family living nearby.
Mark
One of Luke's older brothers.
Matthew
One of Luke's older brothers.
Mother
The mother of Luke, Mark, and Matthew. She became pregnant with Like shortly after the law that limited the population where passed, and she thought she might be able to get away with having a third child. She is kind, gentle, and devoted to her family.
Father
The mother of Luke, Mark, and Matthew. He is a hardworking farmer and often speaks gruffly to his family members, even though he loves them deeply. He places many restrictions on Luke in order to prevent him from being detected by the Population Police.
Jen
A member of a family of Barons, and a third child. She is strong-willed, intelligent, and impulsive. She often flouts laws in various ways, such as by creating chatrooms for other Shadow Children or by eating forbidden foods. She organizes a protest in which Shadow Children meet on the lawn of the President's house to protest for better treatment. She is eventually killed by security forces.
Jen's Father
A member of the Government, he nonetheless works for the benefit of Shadow Children by obtaining fake IDs so that they can live normal lives. He obtains one such fake ID for Luke, which allows him to live at a boarding school posing as a child of Barons.
Carlos
One of the Shadow Children in Jen's internet chat room.
