Finn Cooper

Finnegan "Finn" Thomas Cooper is the main protagonist of the novel. He is the youngest son of Richard and Ellen Cooper, the younger brother of Zach Cooper, as well as an aspiring novelist, fencer, and the lead singer of "The Doghouse Boys". at White Tree Prep.

Physical Appearance
At fourteen years old, Finn is described as a pale-skinned boy with a "mop of fair hair", a light dusting of freckles on his face, and faint eyebrows. When he became embarrassed, his ears notably turned red. He is lanky and somewhat tall for a boy his age, with skinny ankles, gangling arms, and large feet. In spite of this ungainly physique, Finn is quite agile and can run very fast. When in a highly emotional state, he was known to acquire a "hard, blazing look". He is described as good-looking and resemblant of his father by several characters, though he disagrees.

Personality
Finn is an extremely benevolent, courageous, loyal and unselfish person who possesses tremendous strength of character. He is naturally friendly and has a sardonic, wisecracking sense of humor that often brought his friends laughter and relaxation. He is also a talented writer, and even from a young age, he would write stories in his room with the typewriter his parents gave him. Though he is a brilliant wordsmith, Finn himself is nowhere near as finely tuned. He seems to be on the quirky side of things and is the sort of person who prefers to do things his way. It's because of these quirks that Teddy Brower and many others to bullied Finn so viciously.

He was perfectly prepared to put his friends' needs and best interests first, shown by how he ended his relationship with Sara Hillman, due to his deep concern for her (even though being with her was one of the best things that ever happened to him). The amount of trust that Finn put into his friends was so strong that he absolutely refused to consider that any of them would betray him. The closeness that he felt for many was great enough for him to behave violently if any of them were harmed. He also seems to get very irritated when people consider him "cute" or "adorable", as he wants to be taken seriously as a grown-up from the people around him. In that regard, Finn proves himself to be more mature and wiser than them.

Having suffered much both family-wise and school-wise, Finn can be considered psychologically damaged, traumatized, suicidal, emotionally and mentally unstable. He is not usually happy and doesn't smile much; his mood often interchanges between being apathetic, miserable, or angry. Finn is constantly haunted by the memories of the accident which claimed the lives of his parents and aunt, suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, and is shown to suffer from survivor's guilt as a result, which can manifest into extreme self-loathing and suicidal tendencies. He has stated he is not afraid of death because she has wished for it at times, and questions the point in living if all that everyone does is hurt one another. It is also shown that Finn cut his wrists in an attempt at suicide on several occasions.

"I prefer not to wear my heart on my sleeves, for your information."

~Finn in regards to holding in his emotions.

For most of his life, Finn was an intensely private individual who viewed excessive emotional displays as pointless. He had superb emotional control and was adept at concealing his thoughts and feelings, which allowed him to maintain a collected persona. However, he had his limits, and was not incapable of losing his temper, particularly when it came to dealing with his brother Zach. Inevitably, he also became furious when he thought he was being pitied or accused of being cowardly.

Despite his immense control over his emotions, he could be reckless and impulsive whenever it suited him. He was quite blunt with his opinions, sometimes to the point of being tactless. He was prone to moodiness and unkind remarks towards even his friends, though this is likely the result of the great emotional stress he endured during this period. Finn also has shown signs of suffering from recurring clinical depression, such as his sullen and withdrawn demeanor as a result of the tragedies in his life. A particular symptom of this is his unusually fiery temper during his bouts of depression. When in a bad mood and argumentative, even Finn's closest friends have been shown to be wary of him, usually replying to his angry tone in a calm and appeasing voice. These outbursts frighten all but Sara by their sheer force and magnitude alone. Overall, Finn is much the same as any other soldier, struggling to carry on despite the horrors of his past and the brutality he faces.

Finn does have some fears, though he hides them extremely well from his family. In fact, he hides them so well that his older brother considers him "the bravest kid he'd ever known". These fears include being alone, vultures, tight spaces, and seeing his loved ones in danger.