Dale Stewart

Dale Stewart is modeled after the writer, Dan Simmons. Simmons paints himself modestly. Dale is not the leader of the boys nor is he the smartest. He is not quick witted, like Jim and Harlen, and the two prominent females in the story, Cordie Cooke and Michelle Staffney, show no sexual interest in him. He is the most average of the children, neither wild like his younger brother Lawrence nor prodigiously mature like Mike or Duane.

His most endearing characteristic is his protectiveness toward his younger brother Lawrence, who is reckless and impetuous, but also young enough to be vulnerable and naïve. Lawrence is frightened of the dark, and throughout the book, Dale places himself between any darkness that Lawrence encounters. He always walks into their unlit bedroom before Lawrence to pull the cord that hangs from the light in the center of the room, and...