Mañanaland

Papá is Max’s father. Papá is a successful and hardworking bridge-builder, like his own father Buelo was before him. Papá has a somber perspective on life. He prefers reality to daydreams and the present moment to things he cannot change, like the past or the future. He’s described as wearing his “usual troubled frown” (9). He often tells Max wise sayings about stability, patience, and reality, like “stand firmly in the reality of today or life will only disappoint you tomorrow” (5), or “a Córdoba bridge never collapses. First things first, then stone by stone. That’s how to accomplish anything well” (35). Papá had a difficult time adjusting when Max’s mother left and he carries a burden of sadness, as well as worry about Max. Papá wants to save Max from pain, so he’s overprotective. Buelo tells Max that Papá “was once quite lighthearted [...] [b]ut now he wears his worries and fears like a cloak. The grown-up world robbed him of a bit of his spirit, and he lost his belief in happy endings” (49).

Papá is a foil for Max, contrasting Max’s optimism and love for stories. However, Papá is more like Max than it initially appears. Papá became a guardian around the same age as Max and is passionate about helping people. This is what influenced him to marry Max’s mother; Papá wanted to help give Max’s mother a happier life after her hardships in Abismo. Papá also loves fútbol and played for the national fútbol team. However, he quit after only a short time. Papá left the team around the time he married Max’s mother to take care of Max, Buelo, and their family.

Papá also undergoes a transformation in the book. When Max returns home from his journey, Papá realizes Max is truly growing up. Papá can find peace with Max’s ambitious imagination and let go of his worry about Max. Papá begins to believe again in things like “luck” (239) and “happy endings” (229).

Buelo is Papá’s father and Max’s grandfather. Buelo is also a bridge-builder, a guardian, and fútbol player, a legacy both Papá and Max continue. Buelo is proud that he once played on the national team with the famous footballer Nandito. Buelo likes to show Max’s friends a photo of himself and Nandito from the tournament.

Buelo is friendly, loving, and whimsical. He plays a large role in caring for Max, especially when Papá is away. Buelo also mediates between Papá and Max’s conflicting personalities. He encourages Max’s imagination and believes in Santa Maria’s various legends. Buelo and Max tell stories together, including the story of “The Secret Bridge and the Guardabarrera.” Buelo asks Max to answer various questions throughout the story, ensuring Max memorizes the story. This story turns out to hold directions for find the next guardian. Max uses the story to safely deliver Isadora to her sister. Max feels Buelo understands him better than Papá and Max looks to Buelo when Max disagrees with Papá. However, Buelo never interferes with Papá’s parenting and upholds Papá’s decisions. Buelo knows how difficult questions about Max’s mother are for Papá and tries to help Max understand, too.

Chuy, Ortiz, and Guillermo are Max’s friends who play fútbol together.

Chuy is Max’s best friend. The two are like brothers. Unlike Max, Chuy’s parents allow Chuy to attend the fútbol clinic. This causes conflict between Max and Chuy as they begin to drift apart. Ortiz amplifies this conflict.

Guillermo (Gui) is described as “the youngest and smallest of all the boys (19), although he’s very knowledgeable about fútbol. Like Max and Chuy, Gui believes in Santa Maria’s various myths and believes guardians are heroes. However, Gui is closer with Ortiz than Max and Chuy.

Max and Chuy both find Ortiz annoying because all Ortiz does is brag. However, Ortiz gives Chuy and Guillermo the opportunity to attend the Santa Inés fútbol clinic for free. Chuy and Guillermo follow Ortiz, which isolates Max. Ortiz is a foil for Max. Ortiz is older and richer than Max, and not afraid to show off about it:

[Ortiz] liked to remind the boys that he was the son of a councilman, lived in the biggest house in all of Santa Maria, and was older by almost a year. His voice was recently changed and sounded like a man’s […] there were wisps of hair already growing above his lip (14-15).

Ortiz’s older appearance, personality, and greater freedom casts light on Max’s own qualities. Ortiz sometimes picks on Max and makes insensitive comments about Max’s struggles. Ortiz’s parents look down on hidden ones and guardians and gossip about Max’s family being criminals. These judgmental traits stand in contrast to Max’s journey as a guardian towards selflessness and compassion.

Although Chuy is on Max’s side, he increasingly spends time with Ortiz without sticking up for Max. He leaves Max at the water hole to get leche quemada candy with Ortiz and Gui and says nothing when Ortiz’s parents call Max’s family criminals. Max’s isolation from his friends heightens his frustration with finding his identity and desire to prove himself. In the end, Max realizes this conflict is trivial compared to the hardships Isadora and the other hidden ones face. Max forgives Chuy and is gracious when Ortiz gets goalie over him. This highlights Max’s transformation in the book.

Yadra is a character from one of Buelo’s stories, “The Secret Bridge and the Guardabarrera.” Yadra is the Guardabarrera, who guards the secret bridge. People say she’s a troll or river witch. She keeps a collection of lost things and if you’re looking for something, even answers to life’s biggest questions, it is said Yadra might help you find what is missing. If Yadra determines you are true of heart, she might take you on a magical journey where you can hold tomorrow.

When Max becomes a guardian, he discovers that Yadra and the Secret Bridge really exist. Max embarks on a journey as a guardian and meets Yadra. Although she is neither a troll nor river witch, she’s an unusual character. She’s described as extremely tall with a wide smile and rosy cheeks, and she wears mismatching boots. Her collection of lost things, which Yadra calls her “garden of the miscellaneous” (193) contains objects that hidden ones leave behind on their journey or lost objects that get carried to Yadra on the river. This explains Yadra’s mismatched clothing. Yadra uses the items to help others when needed and donates what’s left every year.

Yadra herself was once a hidden one. Unlike other hidden ones mentioned in the book, Yadra isn’t from Abismo. This serves as a reminder that people face difficult circumstances and need help to survive their struggles everywhere. “Cruelty doesn’t only happen across borders,” Yadra says. “Unfortunately, it happens everywhere, even in our own backyards” (195).

Yadra is a guide for Max, and she takes Max across the river to hold tomorrow. Yadra’s wise and calming perspective helps Max find peace with his struggles and life’s uncertainties.