Noah Sweetwine is one of the protagonists of the book, and half the story is told in his perspective. At the start of the book Noah is 13 years old, and he is 16 when the story ends. Noah is one of twins; his sister is Jude, the other protagonist of the story. Noah is a naturally gifted artist, and when he is not drawing or painting in his sketchbook, his is constantly “mind-painting” in response to the world around him.

Initially, Noah is reclusive, spending all his time painting. Noah shares a close bond with Dianna, one that is almost steeped in admiration, though it sours towards the end when he discovers her affair with Guillermo. Noah’s strained relationship with Benjamin, on account of his father’s gendered expectations of Noah and his constant comparisons of Noah with Jude, sees improvement over the course of the story. Initially, Noah feels like he must hide his sexuality from Benjamin, but he eventually comes out to his father and is accepted as he is. Noah’s relationship with Jude is complicated, and it forms one of the central conflicts of the book and contributes to the main theme of

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