Mia, the protagonist, is a 17-year old high school senior and music prodigy. She barely survives the car accident that kills her mother, father, and younger brother, Teddy. Lying in a coma in hospital, the choice to live or die is ultimately hers and this decision is central to the plot’s development. 

While Mia enjoys a remarkably close relationship with her family, she is nonetheless the square-peg in a family of round holes. Unlike her unconventional punk-rocker parents, Mia is conservative and understated, preferring the symphony to the rock concert. Though Mia is a typical Oregon teenager in many ways—she lives with her nuclear family, has a boyfriend, looks after her adorable younger brother, goes to the local high school, and faces typical adolescent anxieties and challenges—Mia is extraordinary in two ways. :

First of all, she is a dedicated cello prodigy who is on the verge of gaining admission into Julliard, one of the world’s most prestigious music schools. Unlike most adolescents, Mia is able to sacrifice personal and leisure time to perfect her craft as a cellist. She aspires to be a professional cellist like her idol, Yo-Yo Ma, and to join a prestigious symphony orchestra like the New York Philharmonic.