Review: Thirteen Reasons Why

Title: Thirteen Reasons Why

Author: Jay Asher

Release Date: October 18^th, 2007

Series: None

Number of Pages: 288

Publisher: Razorbill

Source: Bought

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Jay Asher's brilliant first novel is a moving, highly original story that focuses on a set of audiotapes made by a girl before she committed suicide, and which explain to 13 people the reasons why she decided to end her life. Told in a highly effective duel narrative -- alternating between the girl s voice and the thoughts of a boy who is listening -- this honest, poignant story reveals how other people's actions shape, and by extension can ruin, an individual's faith in people. Intensely powerful and painfully real, Thirteen Reasons Why reveals how brutal high school can be, the consequences of spreading rumors, and the lasting effects of suicide on those left behind.

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Wow. Seriously, I was not expecting this kind of book. I had read the summary. Yet I wasn’t expecting the book to leave me that speechless. It was such an amazing books.

The story itself is Clay listening the tapes and learning what pushed Hannah to kill herself. We get to here her story, while also reading about Clay’s reaction to her words. I found it to be really powerful. I’ve heard many readers say that her reasons weren’t good enough, that it was making fun of teenagers who had real reasons to kill themselves. Okay, first, I don’t think you can judge someone reasons to commit suicide. Usually it’s about the fact that they have lost hope in life. Not everyone see the worthiness of life the same way. I think that’s what is so powerful about the book. You understand that the way you threat people matters, because something you may think is a joke to you can feel like the end of the world to another person.

Also, you stop for a second to thank if someone you may know may show the sign of thinking about suicide. That’s another I heard about the plot: Why didn’t they realized she was about to kill herself? I think it is simple, we see what we want to see.

The characters didn’t really matter to me, except Hannah. I came to care about her in a way, even if I think it is really cruel to do what she did. Yet, I understand. She wanted them to understand. Clay didn’t really mark me as much, but I don’t think any of the other characters could have made a narrator as good as him. He didn’t really do anything wrong. She only wanted him to understand why she did it. He was the only one she wasn’t really angry with.

Jay Asher’s writing was powerful. I read the book in one sitting, on a patio at Starbucks. My coffee turned cold, yet I didn’t care. I couldn’t put the book down until I was done with it.

I have to say that I’m completely in love this book. I think everyone should read it. Amazing and powerful. 5/5