"I hope you're ready, because I'm about to tell you the story of my life."
Thirteen Reasons Why, a young adult novel by debut author Jay Asher, is all about suicide. When his classmate and long-time crush, Hannah Baker, takes her own life, Clay Jensen is heartbroken. He's trapped in a world turned upside-down, memories of their single kiss haunting his every step. As time passes, he can't help but wonder whether there were warning signs he ignored, hints at the darkness stirring within her. So when a box of audiotapes filled with Hannah's voice appears on his doorstep, it's impossible for him to stop listening. Throughout the night, Clay listens to tape after tape, following a map to the sites of all of the tragedies leading up to her fatal decision. Each tape is aimed at a single person, unraveling their facade before his very eyes. Somewhere in those tapes is his name--which means that, without realizing it, he contributed to her death. And he's terrified to find out how.
Asher has a beautiful writing style. Clay and Hannah have distinct voices soaked through with emotion and realism, marking them as unique individuals with their own lives and histories. Hannah's voice follows Clay everywhere, from the cassette player in his garage, to his friend's house, to the playground where she had her first kiss. Every once in a while Clay will pause the tape, a transition signaled by the appearance of the "pause" button on the paper. This also occurs with the "play" button. Rather than interfering with the narrative's natural flow, adding these symbols evens out the pacing and smooths the otherwise ungainly transitions.
There is, however, a downside to Asher's method of telling Hannah's tale. While Hannah Baker is a tragic figure--and, debatably, the true protagonist--we don't get to know her very well as she lays out her story. She tells Clay how she started on the road to depression, who contributed to it, and why she finally decided to put an end to it all. He, in turn, reacts with various levels of horror, anger, and despair. But we never watch her argue with her parents, read a book, or interact with her boss when she works in the school office.The pacing is maintained with breaks in Hannah's narration rather than lighthearted moments unaffected by the looming finale.
Thirteen Reasons Why deals with some heavy subjects, and it follows that there are more than a few potential triggers between its covers, not all of them relating to depression and Hannah's fate. Through listening to the tapes, Clay learns about horrible events in his community, from guys taking advantage of girls to an accident leading to a neighbor's death. There's a moderate amount of profanity, plus a strong emphasis on the consequences of rudeness and inaction that runs through the entire work.
I would recommend this book to older teens looking for a well-written novel about understanding a girl who gave up on life. Jay Asher crafts the setting and plot quite nicely, filling in little details that make the scenes stand out. The underlying themes are also very well-done. However, his debut is littered with scenarios the trigger-sensitive may wish to avoid, and the loss of Hannah Baker is somewhat diminished by the distinct absence of her pre-depression personality. Add this up and you've got a good book that, though lacking in the uplifting-messages department, is difficult to put down. Therefore, I grant Thirteen Reasons Why three stars out of five.
There is, however, a downside to Asher's method of telling Hannah's tale. While Hannah Baker is a tragic figure--and, debatably, the true protagonist--we don't get to know her very well as she lays out her story. She tells Clay how she started on the road to depression, who contributed to it, and why she finally decided to put an end to it all. He, in turn, reacts with various levels of horror, anger, and despair. But we never watch her argue with her parents, read a book, or interact with her boss when she works in the school office.The pacing is maintained with breaks in Hannah's narration rather than lighthearted moments unaffected by the looming finale.
Thirteen Reasons Why deals with some heavy subjects, and it follows that there are more than a few potential triggers between its covers, not all of them relating to depression and Hannah's fate. Through listening to the tapes, Clay learns about horrible events in his community, from guys taking advantage of girls to an accident leading to a neighbor's death. There's a moderate amount of profanity, plus a strong emphasis on the consequences of rudeness and inaction that runs through the entire work.
I would recommend this book to older teens looking for a well-written novel about understanding a girl who gave up on life. Jay Asher crafts the setting and plot quite nicely, filling in little details that make the scenes stand out. The underlying themes are also very well-done. However, his debut is littered with scenarios the trigger-sensitive may wish to avoid, and the loss of Hannah Baker is somewhat diminished by the distinct absence of her pre-depression personality. Add this up and you've got a good book that, though lacking in the uplifting-messages department, is difficult to put down. Therefore, I grant Thirteen Reasons Why three stars out of five.
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