Thirteen Reasons Why

by Jay Asher

THE #1 NEW YORK TIMES AND INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER

**THE BOOK THAT STARTED IT ALL, NOW A NETFLIX ORIGINAL SERIES**

“Eerie, beautiful, and devastating.” —Chicago Tribune

“A stealthy hit with staying power. . . . thriller-like pacing.” —The New York Times

“Thirteen Reasons Why will leave you with chills long after you have finished reading.” —Amber Gibson, NPR’s “All Things Considered”

You can’t stop the future. 
You can’t rewind the past.
The only way to learn the secret . . . is to press play.

Clay Jensen returns home from school to find a strange package with his name on it lying on his porch. Inside he discovers several cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker—his classmate and crush—who committed suicide two weeks earlier. Hannah's voice tells him that there are thirteen reasons why she decided to end her life. Clay is one of them. If he listens, he'll find out why.
               
Clay spends the night crisscrossing his town with Hannah as his guide. He becomes a firsthand witness to Hannah's pain, and as he follows Hannah’s recorded words throughout his town, what he discovers changes his life forever.

Need to talk? Call 1-800-273-TALK (8255) anytime if you are in the United States. It’s free and confidential.

Find more resources at 13reasonswhy.info.
 
Find out how you can help someone in crisis at bethe1to.com.

• ISBN10: 1595141715
• ISBN13: 9781595141712
• Publish Date: 18 October 2007 (first published 1 October 2007)
• Publish Status: Out of Stock
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Razorbill
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 320
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/isbn/9781595141712

Reviews

[kiracanread]

I have so many mixed feelings about this book, and the way it made me feel differently about the television series based on the book. Obviously this is a review of the book, and not the TV series but I will touch on a few things.

Firstly, I did enjoy reading this book, I didn't think that it was a "bad" book per-say, hence the three star rating, I enjoyed the writing style and the way that the author differentiated between the two main characters voices was a great technique and was very easy to understand who was saying what. As far as I know, from books that I've come across - this is a very unique story, and upon its release was one of the first books that really spoke in depth about suicide, especially in the younger generations, and is so prevalent in today's societies. Suicide is an incredibly important topic, and isn't something that we should avoid talking about.

Although, on the other hand, do I think this topic was articulated correctly? Absolutely not. Being the first of its kind, released back in 2007 I think that the author had really good intentions when sharing this story with the audience and highlighting mental health struggles to those who aren't familiar with them. The main character 'Hannah' may be considered to be "self-destructive" with her mental health, which so many of us are guilty of feeling at some point in our lives, when things really do feel like too much and we just spiral and make things even worse for ourselves, although I don't really think this was the correct representation of Depression and Suicide that the author should have used in a book targeted at teenagers and young adults, I don't think it was okay for this book to justify these self destructive spirals, which I think is dealt with much better in the television series, and perhaps could've been more in depth if this wasn't such a short book.

With this book being so short, there were a few sections that were graphic and others weren't which felt slightly odd to me, the choices the author made to make these sections more graphic than others, no spoilers.

Ever since the television show was picked up by Netflix, over three years ago now, it has always been in the spotlight for being a very controversial show and story line, and many have asked the question "Does this show glamorise suicide and mental health?" And as I watched the show before reading the book I always thought that, as someone with their own mental health struggles, that the tv show was a fair and reasonably accurate portrayal of someone suffering with Depression and intrusive thoughts. Although, after reading the book, I do indeed believe that the show made very obvious choices that definitely did glamorise suicide for the audience, one of the most prevalent ones being the way in which the suicide was carried out, which in the book happens in a couple of sentences with no excessive detail, whereas in the show, we very much see the suicide in a graphic, slightly gruesome manner and the pure emotion of the people around her. Which Netflix obviously realised they'd made a mistake with, as they eventually removed that scene from the episode.

Overall, I'm really glad that I did read this book and got to see the differences of the adaptation from the original story and believe that the author upon writing this book, did have good intentions for the story.

(just a heads up, this does not mean I support Jay Asher as an author and would not actively fund his career due to his actions unrelated to this book)

[liz089]

I've already seen the tv show, but I was really curious about the book too.
And well, I really like reading it, made me in the mood for watching the show on Netflix again.
Though there are some differences, it did capture everything perfect.

I binged not only the tv show, but the book as well. Very well written and easy to get through. It makes you feel along with the story, and even though this one went a lot faster, I enjoyed it very much.

4.5 stars..

[Nessa Luna]

I've been wanting to pick up this book for years, but for some reason I never did. Then finally, I was at the Waterstones in Amsterdam and I saw it there, I decided to just go for it. It was this lovely silver edition that I hadn't seen before, and I personally like the colour silver (it's a Slytherin thing), so yeah.

Thirteen Reasons Why is about Clay who receives a box full of cassette tapes on his doorstep. On these tapes, Clay hears the voice of Hannah Barker, a girl who killed herself not long before that; the first girl that he loved. According to Hannah, these tapes are the reasons that she killed herself, the people who made her want to kill herself. And if Clay listens to all of them, he'll hear why he's on there.

When Clay finally arrives at his story, it turns out he is not at all 'to blame' for Hannah's suicide, which I found a bit odd. Why include him then? It was the noly part of the story that didn't make sense to me, why make all this fuzz about thirteen reasons - thirteen people - being to blame for Hannah's suicide and then say that Clay had nothing to do with it? Hmpff.

I thought it was a very strong book, because it talks about subjects that I had very close encounters with. I myself am depressed, have been ever since I got bullied and lost all my friends in high school, and I don't think I'll ever really get over it; I personally never had suicidal thoughts though, or let's put it this way - not in the way Hannah and probably thousands if not millions of other people on this planet have/had. I do know people who had that, but luckily I've never lost any of them (at least, not to suicide).

I liked Clay as a character, and Tony as well (I have to admit I pictured him as a younger Tony Stark, but that is all because of the name). There was one thing I was confused about, and that was Tony's role in all this. I mean apparently he and Hannah had been friends at school, but I don't know she never mentioned him in all this, and I didn't even know that he was going to Clay's school until he said it near the end of the story. Yeah it wasn't really necessary for this to be mentioned in the book, but it kind of came out of nowhere, idk.

The book was written really well, and I found myself unable to put it down - I wanted to know all the reasons Hannah decided to kill herself and I wanted to know it now. What I also liked was that apparently, Hannah's tape have been recorded by someone and are available to listen to on hannahsreasons.blogspot.com. I haven't done it myself, but I might do it soon now that I've finished the book.

In the end, I enjoyed this book - even though it felt weird to read about someone who had killed herself, and I really liked Clay as a character. I recommend this book to people who 'like' stories about depression and suicide (okay not like, but... You know what I mean). Just read it, okay!

And to all those people out there who are depressed and/or are having suicidal thoughts: Talk to someone, someone you know you can trust. Go to a doctor, a friend at school, a guidance councellor at school (idk if you have those at your school). Just talk to someone, okay? There are people out there who care about you, don't forget that!

[Sam@WLABB]

4.5 Stars

This book really forced me to have some deep thoughts. Thoughts about the way we are all connected and how our actions can affect others. This story was Hannah's farewell, but it was also Clay's impetus for introspection and personal growth.

[lizarodz]

It took me forever to read Thirteen Reasons Why, but I finally did and what all the hype was about when it first came out. This book is very powerful, heartbreaking, and full of hope at the same time.

Thirteen Reasons Why is Hannah’s attempt to justify and explain why she took her own life. We know, from the beginning that she did. After she made that decision, she recorded thirteen tapes and left them for specific people to find. Clay is one of these people. He’s a good guy, a hard worker, a bright student, and he had a crush on Hannah. I really liked Clay and we can see how Hannah’s story moved him so deeply, that it changed him.

Was Hannah justified in taking her own life? I don’t think she was, but then again, it made sense to her. Every little part of her story created a snowball effect that made her very desperate and unable to trust others. I think that if her parents and teachers would have been paying more attentions it would have made a difference, but that’s just me guessing. She sounds bitter, desperate, not precisely seeking vengeance, but wishing she could.

Let me just say that there are some seriously messed up people in Hannah and Clay’s school. Some of them committed truly awful transgressions, even crimes, while others where just having ‘fun’ and did not know the consequences of their acts. This book should be mandatory reading in every middle school.

The topic of this book is very serious and important. Suicide is not laughing matter and Asher tackled it in a way that makes it understandable to the reader. Not only that, but other really hard topics come into place in Hannah’s story, lying, bullying, underage drinking, date rape, negligence and more. The writing is very good, fully of feeling and nuances.

Overall, Thirteen Reasons Why turned out to be an amazing read with an impressive story that will stay with me for a long time.

About the narration: I think that Joel Johnstone and Debra Wiseman were the perfect choices to read Thirteen Reasons Why. The format of the book is conducive to have two narrators and it makes listening to the book so much easier. It is my first audiobook by either narrator and I loved it, it was very well read/acted.

[Jo]

Originally posted on Once Upon a Bookcase.

People have raved about Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher throughout the whole time I've been blogging, but I had never read it. I always thought it sounded awesome, but for one reason or another, I didn't buy it until recently. And now I so wish I had read it sooner.

Clay comes home from school to find a package for him on his doorstep. It's full of casette tapes, but no message. When he starts listening to them, he discovers they're from Hannah Baker - who committed suicide two weeks ago. The tapes chronicle the thirteen reasons - the thirteen people - that caused her to take her own life. Clay is one of them. And now Hannah is going to tell him exactly how he affected her life.

This book is extremely powerful, and incredibly moving. It's told in a dual narrative, what Hannah has recorded interspersed with Clay's thoughts and actions as he listens. It's not alternate chapters, it's all together, Hannah in italics, Clay not. We listen along with him, we get some further context of what Hannah is saying from Clay's own memories. It's really hard to listen, because you know it's already happened, and yet as you read, you hope someone will help her. If Clay knew, he would have - this you know for certain because of the person he is, despite the mistakes he's made. It's just so incredibly sad that Hannah wasn't as honest until she had decided to end it.

This story revolves around bullying, but not as you expect. It's not in your face bullying. Some people may not even consider it bullying, because if you do... then perhaps you've been a bully yourself at some point, and who wants to be confronted with that? It's the small comments, the small actions, due to things you've heard or seen. You might make one comment. But if everyone is making a comment, and it's been happening for years? It can affect you. Rumours are a terrible, terrible thing. Especially when people act on those rumours. This whole story is a snowball affect of small actions leading on to much bigger things. Things that get worse. Things that become difficult to deal with, to live with. Things that you just don't want to have to think about anymore, causing feelings you don't want to feel. It was terrible reading this book, because at times, I knew exactly how Hannah felt. Small comments, small actions might not seem like much, but when it feels like everyone has turned against you... it's hard to deal with. It can feel like too much. And Hannah felt there was only one way to escape it.

As I said, it snowballs, and things get worse, much worse. The things she unwittingly involves herself in, the things she sees, the consequences of things she knows... there are some terrible, terrible occurrences in this book, and with everything else Hannah has going on in her life, I can understand how it all got on top of her, how it all felt like too much, and that she just couldn't deal any more. And Clay! Sweet Clay, having to listen to it all, finally understanding, but being unable to do anything, having no way to help, because it's happened already. There is nothing he can do but listen.

This book will change you, even if it's just a little. You will look at yourself and the way you treat others. You will question your behaviour. Because who is a saint, right? Who has never repeated what they heard? Who has never thought of - treated - someone differently because of what they heard? Who's life have you made that much harder by doing what, at the time, seemed like nothing? It's scary. Incredibly powerful, extremely thought-provoking, beautifully moving. I am in so much awe.

[Bianca]

When you mess with one part of a person's life, you're messing with their entire life. Everything... affects everything.

[thepunktheory]

Jay Asher wrote an astonishing book that transports feelings with every word. This book crawls right under your skin and makes you think. You start to wonder how the way you act or the things you say affect and influence people.

An amazing book, definitely worth reading.

[Jyc]

★★★★★ // the book is honestly influential for my high school self. if i read it again, i probably wouldn’t like it, much less agree with its message. if anything, the tv series adaptation ruined whatever good memory i have of this novel. but the 5-star rating stays, if only for the memories.

[notajammiedodger]

I just want to clarify that I didn't give this book two stars because it was a bad book, it just wasn't for me. Suicide doesn't sit well with me.

I should have thought about the fact that this book is about suicide more before I bought it. I was really intrigued at the beginning of this book, wanting to learn Hannah's story, it definitely hooks you in from the very first page. I only realized about half way through why I wasn't getting into the book as much as I thought I should be I personally believe that suicide is the most selfish thing that any one person can do, I'm not saying that it isn't a serious matter and that we shouldn't try and stop it, it's just to me when someone does something like this, they are thinking only of themselves. Of taking away their own pain because they don't want to fight anymore, not caring enough about how what they do will affect the ones that love them.

Hannah's character annoyed me quite a bit throughout the book, I wasn't really getting why she wanted to commit suicide other than just because she couldn't be bothered to put up with any of it anymore and to kind of get revenge on the people that had hurt her. I couldn't really see what Clay liked about her either, but I guess he didn't know her that well. Other than that, this was a great awareness sort of book and I would highly recommend it, you may like it more than me. It is a very education story about ehat effects our actions can have on others, especially when we don't realize it. In the case of this story, it is both the effects that Hannah's "friend's" had on her life, but also what effect her actions had on the people who cared about her like Clay. I really liked that about this book.

If you have read this book, you should check out this song about it by Alice Invictus here.
All of her other songs are great too.

This review is also on my blog The Confessions of a Book Nerd :)