Who Is The Main Character In Everfair?

I read 'Everfair' last summer, and it blew my mind how Nisi Shawl refuses to follow the usual 'one hero saves the day' template. The closest thing to a main character might be Matty, because her journey—from naive do-gooder to someone confronting hard truths—feels like the emotional core. But then you've got Tink, whose inventions drive the plot, and Lisette, whose outsider perspective adds layers. Even secondary characters like the king Mwenda have pivotal moments. It's like asking who the main character of a revolution is—impossible! The book's magic is in how it weaves their stories together.

Shawl's trick is making you care about the community more than any individual. The steampunk elements—airships!—are cool, but what lingers is how everyone's flaws and hopes shape Everfair's fate. If I had to choose, I'd say the land itself is the protagonist, with the people as its beating heart.

What's fascinating about 'Everfair' is how it dodges the typical protagonist setup. Matty's idealism, Tink's ingenuity, Lisette's guilt—they all feel equally vital. The book's structure almost feels like a documentary, jumping between perspectives to show the birth of a nation. No single character 'wins' the narrative; instead, their collisions are the story. Fwendi's chapters hit me hardest, though—her roots in the Congo give the book its soul. But really, trying to pinpoint a main character is like trying to hold smoke. Maybe that's Shawl's point: revolutions don't have solo leads.

Everfair' is this wild, steampunk alternate history novel by Nisi Shawl, and honestly, the 'main character' isn't just one person—it's more like an ensemble cast that represents different facets of the story. You've got Matty, this African-American missionary with a heart full of idealism, and her partner, the pragmatic Tink who's all about engineering. Then there's Lisette, this Belgian woman with a complicated past, and Fwendi, a local leader whose perspective grounds the story in the realities of the Congo. The book juggles their lives so fluidly that it feels like the true protagonist is Everfair itself—the utopian community they're trying to build. Shawl doesn't hand you a single hero; she makes you invest in the collective struggle, which is kinda brilliant.

What stuck with me is how the characters' arcs collide and diverge, like threads in a tapestry. Matty's faith clashes with Tink's skepticism, while Lisette's privilege gets unraveled by Fwendi's truth-telling. If I had to pick a 'central' figure, it'd be Fwendi—her voice carries the weight of the land and its people. But reducing it to one person misses the point. 'Everfair' is about the messiness of revolution, and that demands a chorus, not a solo.