T5W: Best character arcs/developments

1. Sephy Hadley from Noughts and Crosses by Malorie Blackman  - she starts off as a nice girl but is fairly selfish and her upbringing has left her ignorant of just how different her life is from the segregated "Noughts" despite Callum being her best friend. When they intergrate her school reality hits her and her development over this first book is tragic as her world is shattered both from the polictical/racist system she is becoming aware of and the unravelling of her family life.
2. Todd Hewitt from the Chaos Walking trilogy by Patrick Ness  - Todd starts of very naive and angry at the world and in the first book he is forced to grow up as he is left running for his life and caught up in a series of events he doesn't understand. In the second and third book in particular his character goes through a lot of changes. What I like about this development it isn't a straight forward case of becoming stronger and better, he goes through points of weakness and it looks like he is loosing himself and he knows that what he is doing is wrong.
3. Katniss Everdeen from the Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins  - Katniss doesn't start too weak and then get stronger like most heroines, she is strong at the beginning and when she has to she is capable of competing in the Hunger Games. She is strong throughout the first book but then when we see her dealing with the aftermath of the games she is breaking. After the Quarter Quell she is more fragile than ever and not capable of leading a revolution like she would've been at the start of book one. Her development is almost the polar opposite of what the majority of characters go through and that is largely why I loved it so much.
4. Park Sheridan from Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell  - Park is just as judging of Eleanor as everyone else is when he first sees her but they gradually fall together. Despite how much he cares for her Park is still embarrassed of Eleanor although he doesn't want to admit that to himself but finally he stands up for her and in doing so doesn't just learn to be unabashedly with her but also that he can be himself without feeling any shame.
5. Henry Shrimshander from The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach  - Henry starts off very insecure and self depricating with baseball being all he has in his life. Since his self-worth is tied up in his skills as a baseball player he begins to loose it once he psyches himself out is unable to play. As he tries to get his ability to play back he also finds himself and his worth off the field (although he does mess us a lot along the way).

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