1. Diane
1.1. First time crying over a girl
1.1.1. "He couldn't even imagine her. Suddenly he thought oh Diane your not worth it. You cannot be worth it. No one on earth except maybe a guys mother can be worth so much pain."
1.1.2. "That was a long time ago. That was in Shale City. that was before he came to Los Angeles." (54)
1.1.2.1. Feels lonely because he watched his girl cheat on him with who he thought was his best friend back in high school.
2. Kareen
2.1. No arms to hug her goodbye
2.1.1. "'Joe dear darling Joe hold me closer. Drop your bag and put both of your arms around me and hold me tightly. Put both of your arms around me. Both of them.' ... I haven't got any arms Kareen. My arms are gone. Both of my arms are gone Kareen both of them. They're gone." (38)
2.1.1.1. Feels lonely because he can no longer hug the girl that he loves.
2.2. Missing ring from left hand (lost arm)
2.2.1. "You've got the arm isn't that enough where's my ring Kareen's ring our ring please where is it? The hand it was on is dead and it wasn't meant to be on rotten flesh." (29)
3. Father - Bill
3.1. First snow
3.1.1. "The first snowfall was the most wonderful thing on earth. His father always waked him early his voice booming out about the snow." (18)
3.2. Bill's death - the phone ringing
3.3. Hamburger tradition on Saturday nights
3.4. Hard Worker
3.4.1. This trait carried to his son
3.5. Had a larger sized garden to feed his family
3.5.1. This weight of providing for his family hovered over him because he never was finically able to provide how he would've liked.
3.6. Loved his wife unconditionally, this played a role in Joe wanting to love someone with all he could.
4. Shale City, Colorado
4.1. Lincoln Beechy
4.2. The fair during the summer
4.3. Talking by the big ditch
5. Big Idea: Joe values his past life and it has changed the person he now is with what he is going through. War ruined his life, he can no longer live a normal life and do things on his own. After his hardships, he now is lonely from everything he is missing out on.
6. Howie
6.1. A friend from Shale City
6.1.1. Bonded through finding out both their girlfriends cheated on them.
7. Bill Harper
7.1. Joe's best friend in Shale City
7.2. Gets with Diane after Joe
7.2.1. Joe no longer can look at him the same after what he did
7.2.1.1. Gets killed
7.2.1.1.1. "He had got a letter once saying Bill Harper had been killed at Belleau Wood. Bill Harper was a lucky guy. Bill Harper had got Diane and then he had been killed." (54)
8. Mother - Macia
8.1. Hamburger tradition on Saturday nights
8.1.1. Always brought hamburgers home to mom, then dad would arrive later on to eat
8.2. Cooked from the food Joe produced on the property.
8.3. Singing while cooking
8.3.1. "He could hear her singing there and the sound of her voice was the sound of home." (15)
8.4. When Joe couldn't do anything for himself because he has no limbs, he remembers himself being rocked by his mother when he was a baby. He wants his mother and yells for her to help him out during this time. He feels lonely and sad because he wants her back to take care of him again.
9. Joe Bonham (himself)
9.1. Deaf
9.1.1. "He was deaf. It was funny to lie there and have people in the room who were touching you watching you doctoring you and yet not within hearing distance.(Chapter 3)"
9.2. He lost his left arm
9.2.1. "They couldn't do it the dirty bastard they couldn't do it. They had to have a paper signed or something. It was the law" (Chapter 3)
9.3. Joe Joe this is no place for you. This was no war for you. This wasn't any of your business. What do you care about making the world safe for democracy? All you wanted to do was live"(Chapter 2)
9.3.1. Joe was laying in the hospital bed recalling back to how he got to where he was he went to a dark place and felt almost as if a disgrace and because he was so hurt and how his life was he almost had wished he did die while fighting.
10. Glen Hogan
10.1. Onie
10.1.1. Onie hated Glen Hogan because Glen had thrown her over for Diane.
10.2. On summer nights talking about guy things
10.2.1. "They would talk about the hunting knives they all wanted but only Glen Hogan had. They would talk about girls.