Crenshaw

Crenshaw is Jackson’s imaginary friend. He first appeared to Jackson when his family was homeless. Crenshaw tells Jackson that he gave his imaginary friend qualities in himself, such as his preference for facts and purple jelly beans, but imaginary friends also exist to help their creators. Thus, Crenshaw’s job is to stay with Jackson for as long as he needs him. When his family was homeless, Jackson needed comfort and to hold onto hope that things could get better. Crenshaw returns when Jackson needs both of these things again, after he realizes his family is again facing financial trouble.

When Jackson first created Crenshaw, he was too young to be able to articulate his feelings about his family’s situation. As a result, he and Crenshaw did not talk; Crenshaw was simply a comforting presence. When Crenshaw returns, Jackson is older and better understands his feelings but is not yet able to express them. Through conversations with Crenshaw, and especially Crenshaw urging Jackson to be honest with himself, Jackson is able to articulate how he feels, translate feelings into words, and express himself to his parents.

Tom is Jackson’s father and a musician who worked as a builder until he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. His diagnosis required him to quit his job in construction. He started his own handyman business but is often unable to work because of his physical limitations. Though the story is told from Jackson’s point of view, he, and thus readers, can see that Tom struggles with feelings of shame and failure, despite his illness being beyond his control. One consequence is that he does not want to accept help from social services, claiming that he does not want to take from others in need. In reality, he does not want to accept that he cannot provide for his family. This leads to conflict with his wife, who accepts that the family needs assistance. Another consequence is that he does not want to burden his children with adult problems.

For Tom, music is magic and comfort, and he plays for his family. When his family becomes homeless, Tom returns to busking and eventually finds a job in a hardware store. Over time, his and his wife’s incomes are not enough to pay their bills, and the family loses their apartment. At the end of the novel, he finds another part-time job as an assistant manager in a music store, and the family is offered a small, short-term, garage apartment. However, they know that they will have to come up with a stable long-term plan. More significantly, Tom has realized that what happens to him affects his family, and he needs to acknowledge their reality and be honest with them in order to maintain trust between parent and child, even when times are hard.

Sara is Jackson’s mother and also a musician. She worked as a music teacher, but budget cuts eliminated her job. She holds three part time jobs, working at Rite-Aid and waitressing. Sara also feels guilt, expressed when Jackson remembers her calling herself “a bad, bad mother” after the children have water and Cheetos for dinner (129). On the day they moved into their minivan, he also recalls her sighing, “Let the adventure begin” (99).

Sara recognizes that the family needs to apply for social services. When Tom resists, saying they will be back on their feet before the paperwork is processed, she replies simply, “Still” (113). From Jackson’s narrative, Sara does not outwardly express an opinion on this but instead accepts it as fact. In this sense, she occupies an emotional space between Jackson and his father. She values music and love as sources of comfort but is able to address the need for realistic solutions.

When Jackson explodes at his parents at the end of the book, Sara apologizes to him and tries to hug him, but he pushes her away. He tells her that he knows she is sorry, but that does not change anything. His father acknowledges that he is right, and the three sit quietly together as Jackson’s anger slowly drains away. The acknowledgment from both his parents serves as a catalyst for communication, and his father explains what their next steps will be. Sara provides encouragement. She continues to have hope because she will never quit, and this is the quality she passes on to Jackson.

Marisol is Jackson’s best friend. They meet in second grade, when Jackson’s family moves into the Swanlake Village apartment complex. She has two older brothers who have moved away. Her mother is a pilot and her father a salesman. Both travel often for their work and leave Marisol with a woman called Paula.

Marisol first approaches Jackson after he has been mocked by older boys. He had been talking to Crenshaw, and the boys laughed at him for talking to himself. Marisol notices that she and Jackson have the same Tyrannosaurus on their backpacks. Like Jackson, she wants to be a scientist when she grows up, and they enjoy exchanging facts. Marisol also has a whimsical side, expressed in her favorite article of clothing: pajamas. She has a collection with various prints and wears them everywhere, including to school and when she and Jackson go dog-walking.

Until the final chapters of the book, Jackson does not divulge to her his family’s financial problems. He realizes she has probably figured it out because of his outgrown clothes and lack of food, but he has never verbalized it. Prompted by Crenshaw, Jackson admits that his family has to move because they have run out of money, and he is afraid. He also tells her about Crenshaw, though he worries that she will think he is crazy. Instead, Marisol gently encourages Jackson to recognize that believing in magic can be comforting and enjoyable. Facts and truth are important, but so are comfort and pleasure. She also tells him that whether he moves away or not, they will always be friends. Circumstances may separate them in terms of physical distance, but choosing to stay in touch is their choice. It is after his conversation with her that Jackson is finally able to confront his parents.

Robin is Jackson’s younger sister. She loves stories, especially The House on East 88th Street. When she feels anxious and cannot sleep, she brings the book to Jackson so he can read it to her. Robin surprises Jackson by remembering when they lived in their minivan and is afraid of that happening again. He does not know how to put into words the magnitude of their problems and instead promises her everything will be fine, just as his parents tell him. Later, when Tom and Sara reveal that the family will have to move out of their apartment, Robin accuses Jackson of having lied to her.

At the beginning of the book, Robin believes in magic and wants Jackson to believe in it too. At a friend’s birthday party, she brings home four purple jelly beans and hides them in her cap for Jackson to find when they play cerealball, the game he invented that involves throwing a piece of cereal into her baseball cap. When he asks her where they came from, she pretends not to know. At the end of the book, she admits that she got them at the birthday party and that there is no such thing as magic. Jackson tells her that he believes magic may exist.