Closed for the Season

Mr. Forbes is Logan’s father and an art teacher at the local school. He is the antithesis of his wife, and they both embody drastically different types of parenting. Mr. Forbes, for example, encourages Logan to be friends with Arthur. He even goes so far as to openly speak up against his wife’s clear admiration for Rhoda and the DiSilvios. As an act of protest, he wears “his faded SAVE THE WHALES T-shirt” and jeans that “have paint spattered all over them” to the party that Mrs. Forbes drags her entire family to (111). Mr. Forbes pushes back against his wife’s desperate attempt to cultivate their image and appearance in accordance to the upper strata of Bealesville society. He frequently jokes around with Logan and though he is also frequently concerned for his son’s safety, he does believe that Logan should be free to make his own mistakes.

Mrs. Forbes is Logan’s mother and can be, interestingly enough, seen as one of the primary antagonists of the novel. From the beginning of the book, she is utterly taken by Rhoda DiSilvio, going so far as to lament that the real estate agent would lie to her to sell them the house. This foreshadows the reveal of Mr. DiSilvio’s later scheme. She is obsessed with appearances and wants the family to be like the DiSilvios. She frequently argues with Mr. Forbes about his “hippie past and his low salary and the dumpy house [they] lived in” (112). Mrs. Forbes’s complaints are almost entirely tied in with how others might perceive them. Despite her focus on the external, or perhaps because of it, she is blind to the truth of the DiSilvio’s wickedness, and her own misconstrued perception of the Jenkinses. Instead of learning her lesson, however, at the end of the novel, Mrs. Forbes pretends that she had seen through Rhoda and the DiSilvios all along. 

Arthur is Logan’s twelve-year-old neighbor. He is described as having “straight yellow hair” that “hung in his eyes” and broken glasses that “were held together with tape” (2). Curiously, Arthur is dressed in clothes that are far too big for him, even wearing a watch that is too large on his small frame. He is a smart kid who brags to Logan about all the books he read in the previous year. He speaks too much and is never afraid to challenge anyone and everyone to some verbal sparring.

Despite being smaller and weaker than Billy, Johnny, Danny, and even Mr. DiSilvio, Arthur speaks up to them bravely. Arthur is aware of his own intelligence and is not afraid to boast about it. This awareness, however, leads him to a form of prejudice and his own brand of bullying to the same people who physically bully him. In return, he writes them off as low-lifes and idiots.

Arthur’s parents and past remain a bit of a mystery, though as he and Logan become better friends, he reveals what little he knows to him. Hahn writes, “I used to pretend Eleanor Beale was my mother, and I was her little boy, and we were reading that book together. Sometimes if no one was around, I'd even climb into her lap. Dumb, huh?" (87).

Though it would be easy for Logan to write Arthur off as the nerd that he no longer wants to be, Logan remains true and loyal to his friend. It would likewise be easy for the audience to write the boy off as a simple know-it-all, but this reveal shows that reading has filled a void for Arthur in the same way that Bear has for Danny. It is this similarity and understanding at the end of the novel that may have ultimately led Arthur to stand up for Danny on their first day of school.

Mrs. Donaldson worked at the Magic Forest Amusement Park from 1960 until she was murdered in her home. She was questioned by the police numerous times after a huge sum of money “had been embezzled from the mark” (26). Myrtle is Violet’s mother, and she hated her son-in-law, Silas Phelps. Myrtle was ultimately murdered by Silas and Mr. DiSilvio after she discovered that they were the ones who stole the money. Her notes that she left behind allowed for the boys and Violet to solve the crime and clear her name of any wrongdoing. 

Bear is a black dog that is part Rottweiler and Labrador. He was Mrs. Donaldson’s dog before she died, and he went to live with the Jenkinses. Hahn frequently uses Bear as a deux ex machina—a contrived or convenient plot device used to help a seemingly hopeless situation. Bear is the one who uncovers Myrtle’s original letter to Violet in the attic. He leads the boys straight to it, and does the same later in the park, where he is the one who finds the gingerbread men toys and the money. Bear frequently leads the boys from place to place and helps them solve the mystery and catch the antagonists. Bear tracks down both Mr. DiSilvio and Silas before the police can in the amusement park. Without his help, both men might have escaped entirely.

Bear is also Danny’s one source of affection and comfort. Danny is repeatedly rejected by the people in his life, and even denied having access to Bear numerous times in the novel. When the boys give Bear the choice to choose between them or Danny, however, the smart dog chooses the boy who needs him most.

Johnny O’Neil is seen frequently throughout the novel working odd jobs for any scrap of cash that he can find. He delivers pizza, mows the lawn, and does chores for the Forbeses. He is covered in tattoos, ones that Mrs. Forbes clearly disapprove of, and that Mr. Forbes admires. It is no wonder that Johnny is drawn to making a deal with Mr. DiSilvio in exchange for finding the money. His motivation throughout the story is clear: money. As a member of one of the lower-class families in a relatively rural town, opportunity is few and far between. As the first of many red herrings, Johnny is driven to potentially committing crime in order to make a quick buck. His narrative arc prompts the reader to question if Bealesville should let bigger companies and corporations in, thus increasing the number of jobs available.

Silas Phelps is Violet’s ex-husband and Mrs. Donaldson’s murderer. He is infamous in town for being an abusive criminal. He has been in jail numerous times. Silas has no qualms about abusing his children or his wife to get what he wants: money. Logan describes Silas’s character perfectly when he thinks that Silas “was definitely the type to show up on the evening news, holding a dozen cops at bay while threatening to kill the Wal-Mart shoppers he’d taken hostage” (68). Silas is a violent, cruel man who ends up trying to curry favor with Danny in order to hide from the police. Danny turns him in, however, and Silas ends up going to jail. 

Nina Stevens is an undercover detective who pretends to be a reporter in order to find the embezzled funds from the Magic Forest. She has “long dark hair, pretty eyes, nice mouth, small nose” and both of the boys find her extremely attractive (27). She meddles frequently with the boys’ affairs, and, ironically enough, gets in the way of their far more successful investigation. Despite being a detective, she is similarly fooled by appearances, disbelieving Mrs. Jenkins and trusting the DiSilvios. She does end up redeeming herself by catching the antagonists and advocating for Arthur to Logan’s mother. 

Violet is Mr. Donaldson’s daughter and Danny’s mother. The people around her describe her as “too pretty” and “too fragile—she was so little and skinny, a gust of wind could probably strand her in a treetop” (67). She is meek and easily frightened, probably due to abuse at the hands of her ex-husband. Logan insinuates that “she must have been thirteen or something when he was born” (67). Though Logan and Arthur ultimately find the money and the last remaining letter Myrtle left for her, one is left to wonder if she ever overcomes the fear that has defined her life for so long. When she receives the final gingerbread man, she seems like she is set free. This unlocking and removal of fear directly parallels the permanent removal of Silas and his violence from her life.

Danny Phelps is Violet’s son and Mrs. Donaldson’s grandson. He is extremely close with Bear, and the dog is the only thing that seems to bring him joy. Danny is a bully and he initially appears to be following in the footsteps of his father. After he suffers direct abuse at the hands of Silas, and witnesses Violet suffering the same, he stands up to his father. He does so in a way that is legal and ends with justice, not revenge. Danny Phelps is Arthur’s “number-one enemy,” though they used to play together and be friends when they were younger (42). Arthur says that Danny is “the dumbest kid in Bealesville,” but at the end of the book, he and Danny reach a truce (42). With Silas gone, Danny is already dressed in better clothes and looking healthier than before.

Billy Jarmon is Johnny O’Neil’s cousin and also one of the men working for DiSilvio to find the embezzled money. He is rude, loud, and absolutely despises Arthur Jenkins, who makes him feel stupid and uneducated. According to Arthur, Billy is frequently in trouble, and his pattern of getting involved with the law continues throughout the entirety of the book: "He's already been in jail at least twice. Once for breaking and entering and once for stealing a Humvee and tearing up the Magic Forest with it” (48). His reckless boredom seen in his random acts of destruction could be yet another sign of his class status; penniless and stuck in Bealesville, Billy turns to crime.

Mr. DiSilvio is the main villain of Hahn’s Closed for the Season. He owns most of Bealesville and is undoubtedly one of its most successful and wealthy citizens. He wants to build a new development on the land of the old amusement park in order to bring more business and opportunities to the town and to himself. Mr. DiSilvio is willing to increase the size of his own wallet at any cost. He is selfish, conniving, and ruthless. Mr. DiSilvio is willing to hurt Violet and even shoot Logan, Arthur, and Danny if they get in his way. Billy Jarmon warns Nina about Mr. DiSilvio, saying, “He puts on airs and sponsors soccer teams and donates money to the library and the hospital, but you dig deep enough, you'll find he's got another side altogether” (49). Like the rest of the DiSilvios, he is not as he seems. 

Rhoda is a prim and proper real estate agent who immediately befriends Mrs. Forbes. She continually prompts Mrs. Forbes to prevent Logan from being friends with Arthur Jenkins. She believes that Logan should be more like her son Anthony and play sports instead of reading. Rhoda tells Logan directly, “Don’t keep your nose in a book. You won’t make friends that way” (107). Rhoda is similarly as preoccupied with external appearances as Mrs. Forbes is, as she is absolutely mortified when Mrs. Forbes turns up at her party wearing a similar dress. After her father’s illegal schemes are revealed, she immediately leaves town with Anthony.