Doug Swieteck

Doug, a boy in junior high, is the main character of Okay for Now. He is the youngest member of his family and has two older brothers, Lucas and Christopher. One of his most prized possessions is a signed New York Yankees jacket that his friend Holling gives him. At the beginning of the novel, Doug and his family live in Long Island, New York. When they move to a smaller town, Marysville, upstate, Doug feels isolated from the kids at his new school. He worries that people will judge him based on the poor reputation of his father and brothers; this insecurity, coupled with his frustration at his troubled home life, leads him to occasionally act out at school. He spends much of his free time at the library, where he discovers a love of drawing. In particular, he learns to draw birds in an attempt to cope with the problems he deals with at home. Over the course of a year, Doug must confront many serious problems, from dealing with his turbulent relationship with his abusive father and brothers to navigating his first love, with Lil Spicer, and Lil's subsequent illness.

Lucas Swieteck

Lucas is Doug's oldest brother. When the novel opens, Lucas is away fighting in the Vietnam War. When Lucas returns home, he has lost both his legs and his vision. He is initially cruel to Doug, but they eventually reconcile as Doug helps Lucas come to terms with his injuries and experiences from the war. Lucas recovers his eyesight and begins to adapt to his new life. He decides to get a job so that he can put Christopher through college and is eventually offered a position as an assistant gym coach at the junior high school. Though at first he worries he won't physically be able to do the job, he proves himself wrong and succeeds in his new role.

Mr. Swieteck

Doug's father is abusive and cruel. At the beginning of the novel, he works at Culross Lumber, but he is eventually fired for fighting with his boss; this is what forces the Swieteck family to relocate to Marysville. Mr. Swieteck is naturally pessimistic and struggles to control his temper, and these traits lead him to behave abusively—both physically and emotionally—toward his wife and sons. His eldest sons take cues from his behavior and have become cruel and abusive themselves. Doug resents the way his father treats his family, particularly his mother, and his worst fear is that he is turning into his father. Doug's father shows signs of changing over the course of the novel, eventually returning Joe Pepitone's jacket to Doug and telling the police it was his friend Ernie who robbed Spicer's Deli, in order to clear Christopher's name.

Christopher Swieteck

Christopher is the middle Swieteck brother. He is cruel to Doug and gravitates toward other young men who seem headed for delinquency, though he shows a softer side to his character when he helps the injured Lucas into the house. The police and community falsely believe he is the one who robbed the hardware store and Spicer's Deli, but Mr. Swieteck eventually helps to clear his name.

Ernie Eco

Ernie is a friend of Doug's father who helps him get a job at the Ballard Paper Mill. Mrs. Swieteck worries that her husband's being around Ernie again will keep him out drinking all night. Ernie is a shady character who ends up robbing Spicer's Deli; Doug realizes this when he sees Ernie wearing Joe Pepitone's jacket, which was stolen from Doug.

Mr. Ballard

Mr. Ballard is...