13 Reasons Why

Title: Thirteen Reasons Why 
Author: Jay Asher
Published: 
ISBN: 9781595141712
Pages: 288
Price: $16.99
Genre: realistic fiction
Awards: New York Times Bestseller, YALSA Best Book for Young Adults, Selected Audiobooks for Young Adults
Reading Level: 6th grade
Reading Interest: 9th grade and up
Plot Summary: Clay Jensen is left with a series of audio cassette tapes by a fellow classmate, Hannah Baker. Hannah Baker recently committed suicide and left behind tapes that contain the 13 reasons why she killed herself. The 13 reasons are connected to 13 people and each person is suppose to listen to the tapes and pass them along to the next person on the list. Clay isn't really sure why he is on the list, since he doesn't know Hannah very well. They had worked together one summer at a movie theater and he even kissed Hannah once but things never went anywhere. Clay never got the chance to tell Hannah that he liked her and now he struggles with the fact that he is part of the reason Hannah killed herself. With the tapes is also a map that Hannah has placed stars on to mark different places where things took place. She instructors the listener to go to the places as she discusses her reasons why. As the tapes go along each person on the list is brought up, along with what they did to put them on the tapes. Clay listens to the tapes on a walkman as he travels around town reliving Hannahs life as she talks on the tapes.
Critical Review: The story is told from a unique perspective, in that Hannah, who is dead, tells most the story from the tapes she left behind. The reader also gets to see how Clay reacts to Hannah's story with his thoughts breaking up the tapes. The plot draws the reader in as Clay goes through tape after tape, trying to find out how he plays into Hannah's suicide. Jay Asher does a great job at giving a bit of incite into the mind of Hannah and of Clay. As a reader I wondered, why would a teenager want to kill themselves? While it seems that nothing truly horrible happens to Hannah the story shows how multiple issues combined lead to Hannah feeling depressed and hopeless. I think that the story provides the reader with some great talking points. A teen might not think their one act can impact a person but in the story the one act of many people lead to Hannah's suicide. This idea may prompt teens to think about their interactions with others and how their actions can impact another. I feel this story stands out from other stories on suicides because it feels real. Jay Asher does a great job of not coming across as an after school special or too preachy. The story seems very believable and natural. Also, the uniqueness of a dead character playing such a large role in the story through the tapes is something new and it adds to the realism factor. The reader is able to hear Hannah's voice and thoughts despite her being dead. However, there was times when I found myself frustrated with Hannah. I kept thinking that her suicide could have been prevented and that it was unneccesary, which I think was part of Jay Asher's messsage. All the things that happened to Hannah were things that I think she could have dealt with and moved on. As an adult it was frustrating to read, but I feel that a teen might relate to Hannah's feelings of hopelessness. Often times, teens can't always see that there is more to life than what happens in high school.
Reader's Annotation: Clay Jensen has a crush on his fellow freshman student Hannah Baker, problem is Hannah killed herself and soon after left Clay tapes which contain the 13 reasons why Hannah committed suicide. Why did Hannah send the tapes to Clay? And what secrets are hidden in these tapes?
Book Talking Ideas: A great book talk idea would be to give "13 reasons why you should read this book". The reasons would focus on the great story line, the mystery surrounding why Hannah killed herself and the great characters made by Jay Asher.
Issues: The book deals with a teen suicide, drinking and sex which some may find to be too mature for teens.
Main themes: suicide, friendships, death
Bibliotherapeutic Usefulness: Suicide is a very real thing for many teens and it is one of the leading causes of death for teenagers. Because of this many teens may have thought about suicide or know someone who has committed suicide. This story can shed some light on why teens commit suicide and how it can be prevented.
Read alikes: Stay with Me by Garret Freymann-Weyr, Looking for Alaska by John Green, Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A.S. King
Author Website: http://jayasher.blogspot.com/
Professional Reviews: Publisher's Weekly
Kirkus Reviews
Why Include this book? For me personally I have dealt with 2 teen suicides since I started working at my library 3 years ago. The book deals with teen suicide, which is the second leading cause of teens death in the U.S. In Oregon, where I live, teenage suicide is much higher than the national average. Many teens can relate to Hannah's feelings and her issues with school and her thoughts of suicide.