I’ve wanted to read Thirteen Reasons Why since I first heard about it. Nothing can ruin a book faster than unfulfilled expectations, but this book turned out to be so much more than what I anticipated. Thirteen Reasons Why grabs your attention from the first page and pulls you into the intrigue of Hannah’s death and her tapes with ease. Clay’s character was also immediately accessible through his emotional and cognitive reaction to Hannah’s proclamation that he’s one of the reasons for her suicide. I did find the dialogue changes between Clay’s thoughts and Hannah’s recordings a little hard to follow, and this did result in some confusion. At first, I tried to re-read passages to make better sense of them, but eventually I just went with it and worked it out as I progressed. This book opens the debate about Rape Culture and exposes it to those who might normally ignore a dialogue about such things. For this alone, I applaud Jay Asher. It is, however, also important that Thirteen Reasons Why illuminates how actions which seem inconsequential when seen separately can so easily turn into a chain of disasters for the persons effected by them.
It’s a perfectly normal day for Clay Jensen, until he discovers a package addressed to him on his front doorstep. Inside it are seven cassette tapes. Excitement soon gives way to horror and confusion as he puts the first tape into an old stereo in the garage and presses play. He knows that voice, he thought he’d never hear it again because Hannah Baker committed suicide. As Clay listens, Hannah explains that these tapes contain the thirteen reasons for her death, and that the reason Clay received them is because he’s one of those reasons.
I’ve wanted to read Thirteen Reasons Why since I first heard about it. Nothing can ruin a book faster than unfulfilled expectations, but this book turned out to be so much more than what I anticipated. Thirteen Reasons Why grabs your attention from the first page and pulls you into the intrigue of Hannah’s death and her tapes with ease. Clay’s character was also immediately accessible through his emotional and cognitive reaction to Hannah’s proclamation that he’s one of the reasons for her suicide. I did find the dialogue changes between Clay’s thoughts and Hannah’s recordings a little hard to follow, and this did result in some confusion. At first, I tried to re-read passages to make better sense of them, but eventually I just went with it and worked it out as I progressed. This book opens the debate about Rape Culture and exposes it to those who might normally ignore a dialogue about such things. For this alone, I applaud Jay Asher. It is, however, also important that Thirteen Reasons Why illuminates how actions which seem inconsequential when seen separately can so easily turn into a chain of disasters for the persons effected by them.
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AuthorCaitlin has loved fantasy from a young age. She started writing in earnest because she couldn’t find the book she needed to read. |