We Were Liars

Gat is a boy the same age as Cady who is part of her larger family. He is the son of her aunt Carrie's partner, Ed, who is South Asian. Gat is an intellectual who wants to change the world. He has seen poverty in India, and he thinks owning a lot of property is wrong if people are suffering from poverty at the same time nearby. Gat has an assertive, adventurous personality, and Cady associates him with strong coffee. But he is also very sensitive, and is hurt when the patriarch of the Sinclair family makes him feel not wanted. His motto is "don't accept an evil you can change" (100).

Mirren is Cady's cousin and one of the Liars, along with Gat and Johnny. She is a very kind person, and appropriately, her motto is, "Be a little kinder than you have to" (100). Mirren is more feminine than Cady and is associated with Barbie dolls.

Johnny is the final member of the Liars. He is less serious than the others. He loves to play with Legos. He is also very caring, and cares for Cady especially. His ghost advises her about what she has done and her quest to recover her lost memories.

Penny Sinclair is Cady's mother. She personifies the Sinclair family’s imperative to "be normal." Penny represents the Sinclair family ideal of never admitting that anything is wrong or that anyone is suffering. Nevertheless, she cares deeply for Cady, and her help is invaluable in helping Cady recover. Her one major fault is her concern for property. She fights with her sisters over the family inheritance, and this quality makes her less admirable in Cady's eyes.

Harris is the patriarch of the Sinclair family, and he embodies its good values as well as many of its less-than-admirable qualities (in the eyes of Cady). He has financial power, and he relishes it. He is not afraid to manipulate his daughters and make them beg for his property and wealth. He believes in maintaining appearances, keeping a stiff upper lip, and admitting no wrong. He harbors racist tendencies and thinks the Sinclairs are good because they are blonde and tall. But he also has good values, such as hard work, and in the end, he proves flexible and open to allowing Gat’s father into the family.

Cady's grandmother is not around for long in the novel. She is something of a trophy wife, a beautiful woman a wealthy man marries, adorns with expensive jewelry, and shows off. Like her husband, Harris, Tipper is intolerant of the new, non-white members of the family.

Bess Sinclair is the bad sister, the one who is most responsible for starting the fighting over property and inheritance. She wants the Boston house, and she insensitively talks about inheriting it, even though her father is still alive. She is also aggressive toward her sisters and is responsible for saying one of the most hurtful statements made about Gat. She remarks that Gat is not one of them.

Carrie Sinclair is Johnny's mother. She is the sister who is most associated with the suffering that the burning of Clairmont House causes. Cady sees her at night, walking alone and crying. But Carrie also, like Bess, starts fights over property. She wants the larger house that Cady's mother has been assigned on the island. So she herself is partly responsible for the fighting that inspires Cady to desire to destroy the family property and punish her unkind aunts.

Bess's children are known as the "Littles." They serve as ways of measuring Cady. Bonnie, for example, tells Cady she looks like a "dead vampire" after Cady returns to Beechwood Island. Liberty is more like a traditional, "normal" Sinclair. She scolds Bonnie for being obsessed with dead things. Taft and Will suffer in different ways as a result of Cady's actions. Taft fears the wind in Cuddledown, and Will has nightmares.