One of Mitch Albom’s strengths as a writer is in creating strong characters. His characters feel real, as real as Coldwater. There is Katherine Yellin, the real estate agent mourning her sister who is stuck in the middle of much of the media’s attention. Jack Sellers, the local police chief who lost his son in Afghanistan, and Sullivan Harding an ex-navy pilot who is struggling with his own demons. His wife died in a car crash on the day he crashed a plane and he blames himself. With Albom’s talent they all feel real, because living in Michigan, we all know people just like every one of them. It is truly a gift to be able to create characters that feel this alive.