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Teddy Daniels is a U.S. Marshal and the main character in Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane. There's a lot going on with Teddy and it's going to be hard to write about him without giving away spoilers. I will do my best. Teddy is the strong silent type. He's been sent to Shutter Island, an asylum for the criminally insane, to search for an escaped inmate. A mother of a storm is blowing up, but that doesn't deter him. He has his own reasons for wanting to check out the island and the residents. His partner is new to him, Chuck Aule. On the ferry ride, Chuck and Teddy strike up a fairly easy camaraderie by doing a quick little check of location and unit served during World War II. I loved their interactions. Teddy is haunted by memories of his wife. (I can't even remember her name. Dora? Something like that.) Seriously. He's repressing too much around her memory and his psyche is not handling it well. He lapses into thoughts of her at the oddest times and has very intense dreams about her despite trying not to think about her. He just doesn't seem to be able to move on. Teddy realizes that something strange is happening on this island pretty quickly. He's not getting much real help from anyone in his investigation and the escape doesn't make any sense. But Teddy is hard core and goes all out to find out what happened. A hurricane doesn't even stop this man. He's out doing what needs to be done in the pelting rain and roaring wind. He keeps finding cryptic clues in odd locations. He's a fantastic investigator, making intuitive leaps that you just know have to be right. He's also learned to trust no one and nothing.…

Ed Kennedy, from I Am the Messenger by Markus Zusak, is an underage cab driver with no prospects. He's the very picture of your average young man. But someone has chosen him to carry out some tasks that require him to be anything but average. He has been chosen to make a difference in the lives of some complete strangers. Ed starts really noticing what's going on around him, and acting to fix what he can. How hard is it for most of us, wrapped up in own our thoughts, dreams, and worries, to notice what's going on around us? He has a small group of under-achieving but loyal friends. They get together and play cards at night. They play soccer together. They get into fights together. They are practically family. They are hysterical. One of his friends is a girl named Audrey. Ed wishes that she was more than a friend. He has it bad for her. I don't mean in a "You're so beautiful, let's have sex" kind of way. He loves her with all that he is and all that he could be. She has been hurt and she's not looking for that kind of relationship. They're both afraid of messing up their friendship. Ed develops into a bit of a philosopher. Here are a couple of my favorite quotes "It's not a big thing, but I guess it's true--big things are often just small things that are noticed." "Sometimes people are beautiful. Not in looks. Not in what they say. Just in what they are." They make you think, don't they? He also has a very choppy style that I keep unconsciously imitating. Ack! I know that Ed was funny and smart enough and loyal and brave and a little broken himself. But what really defines…