The protagonist of the series, transitioning from a 15-year-old virgin on Packett Island to a college student navigating grief, friendship, and romance amid WWII. His journey is framed by a reflective adult voiceover.
J.D. Cahill's older son, who has a strained relationship with his father and is left with much of the responsibility for his younger brother. After J.D. finds him drunk and fighting, Daniel is drawn into the robbery case and tries to protect Billy Joe. He aids Fraser's gang in their escape and robbery, then attempts to deliver the gang's share of the money to Fraser before his father rescues him.
Ben is a young, inexperienced admirer of cowboy life who joins Frank Culpepper's cattle drive after asking to go along. He repeatedly mishandles assignments, loses horses, and causes trouble, but later kills an armed bartender, chooses to defend Nathaniel's party, buries his fallen friends, discards his gun, and rides away.
Teen artist navigating wartime college, romance, and family tragedy.
One of three impressionable youths who run away to Texas. He accidentally kills several men, joins Spikes' gang, refuses to abandon dying friends, discovers Spikes' betrayal, kills him, and dies at a train station.
A Yugoslavian man who discovers his family mule's kicking talent. He becomes Gus's handler, travels to the US, and scores the game-winning touchdown after the mule collapses during the Super Bowl.
Gary Grimes has 16 screen credits in a career dating back to 1960. Their work is anchored in the Summer of '42 Collection universe with 2 titles. Signature works include The Culpepper Cattle Co., Summer of '42, The Prize. Explore the interactive character relationship maps on each title page to trace how their roles connect across franchises.
Related entry on Wikidata (Q3098560), public domain (CC0).
