Protagonist

Character Role Analysis

Mattie Gokey

This is a no brainer. Mattie is the one whose struggle is the focal point of the novel, plus she matures a ton over the course of the book. Of course, coping with the death of her mother, getting accepted into college, dealing with poverty, embarking on a new job, falling in and out of love… well, this will help pretty much anyone mature. And when Mattie follows her path out of Eagle Bay, we're able to close the cover with some satisfaction that she made the right choice.