Sola is about eight feet tall with light olive-green skin. She is a Green Martian of the Thark tribes. Unlike most Green Martians, her parents kept her egg and her mother, Gozava, hatched her instead of being brought to the tribal leaders to decide whether to be hatched or destroyed. Her mother later mixes her with newly hatched children recently arrived from one of the incubators. Her mother's sin is discovered by Sarkoja, but she convinces the leaders that she had destroyed her egg.

A Princess of Mars

When John Carter is captured by the Tharks, Sola is charged with looking after him. Unlike most Green Martians, and fortunately for John Carter, Sola is able to feel emotions such as compassion and love. This is because she knows who her parents are, most Green Martians do not. As John becomes a tribal leader or Jed, though still a captive, of the Tharks, Sola becomes part of his tribe. She eventually escapes with John and the Red Martian prisoner, Dejah Thoris, and heads to Helium. She and Dejah are captured twice along the way. The second time, John rescues her with the help of Tars Tarkas, the new Jeddak (a Jeddak is the highest level of leadership within the Martian tribes) of the Tharks and an army of Thark warriors. John has told Tars that Sola is his daughter and he publicly acknowledges her as such once they all arrive at Helium.