Lawn Boy

Doug Goble is a local real estate tycoon. He is portrayed as cunning and manipulative. An aggressive businessman, he believes that the key to success is to do favors for people who can then do something for him in return. However, as he describes it, Goble rarely calls in his favors. Instead, he will ask the person he has helped out to do a favor for someone else—and that someone else, of course, is in a position to help Goble in some way. For example, he explained that if his girlfriend needed a veterinarian for her dog, he would call in a favor:

And this guy, this veterinary surgeon, I’ve done him a favor, too, see, a couple of favors? I helped him refi, I structured his escrow conveniently, moved some numbers around, and I didn’t charge him for any of it. No closing costs. So he owes me one (187).

Goble further explains that after completing the dog’s operation, the veterinarian would still owe him a favor since he did a favor for someone else, not Goble.

Goble’s Realtor picture, with his perfect hair, is plastered all over town. He is willing to do anything to make a buck. He admits that one reason he hired Mike is because he doesn’t look too Mexican. He explains that his rich clients “don’t want to see Mexicans in their prospective neighborhood” (189). “That’s them, understand, the clients. […] Not me. Don’t confuse me with my clients. I’m fine with Mexicans.” He explains that Mike, who is half-Mexican, is right for the job because he’s “not Mexican Mexican” (189).

Goble acts as though his sexual experimentation with Mike in the fourth grade never happened when Mike confronts him. Despite his character flaws, Mike admits that he learned something from Goble’s advice about going for what he wants and not giving up.

Andrew, a librarian whom Mike befriends, is the most idealistic and empathetic character in the novel. When he’s not recommending muckraking or dystopian novels to Mike, he is organizing protests. He recruits Mike to join him in protest events outside a Walmart and puppy mill.

Like Mike, Andrew was abandoned by his father. Mike’s father abandoned his family when Mike was small because, by his own admission, he didn’t want children or a family. In Andrew’s case, his father didn’t want a gay son.

When Mike tells Andrew that he is starting his own landscaping business with his former co-worker Tino, Andrew shows his empathy. He congratulates Mike and offers him encouragement: “You’ve got talent, Michael—I wish I had your talent” (277). Mike also notes that Andrew is a good listener.

Andrew is filled with self-doubt, just like Mike. However, the two characters seem to complement each other in a way that boosts both of their self-esteem. Andrew encourages Mike to pursue his goals and have confidence in himself even when Mike describes himself as a “wannabe.”

Remy, the young woman Mike has a crush on in the early part of the novel, is in many ways a catalyst character, in that she induces a change in the protagonist. Remy is open to a relationship with Mike, but he hesitates at every step along the way. She has a sense of humor and seems much more confident in pursuing a potential romantic relationship than Mike is. When Mike finally finds the nerve to ask Remy out, it is Remy who initiates a kiss between them. When Remy asks Mike if he wants to go back to her place, Mike declines her offer, citing a need to get up the next morning for a big day at work. She propels Mike to come to terms with his sexuality.

There is no class barrier between them, as Remy works as a waitress and at one point tells Mike that she is broke. Mike has been dropping by the restaurant regularly just to be in her presence. He is impressed with how accepting and patient Remy is with Nate. He finds her “so sympathetic, so understanding. […] What was stopping me from asking this woman out?”