TH1RTEEN R3ASONS WHY: Book Review

I came across TH1RTEEN R3ASONS WHY by Jay Ashey quite easily. I was on my parent's computer and I was looking at their bookshelf. My mom had apparently bought this book awhile back, had started reading it, but then put it aside and forgot about it. I was waiting for a video to download, so I figured why not? As soon as I started reading it, I couldn't put it down. In just a couple of hours I was on page 100 already, and in two days I had finished it completely. I have to say this book is a real eye opener, and definitely something teens in school should have to read. 


I'm not sure if you've heard about it, depending on where you live, but a young male took his life just the other day by jumping off the GW Bridge. Why you may ask? Because his roommate at Rutgers University broadcasted him having sex with another male, on twitter & ichat. Pathetic? Yes. Horrible? Yes. Right? NO. Because if this man hadn't been outed to everyone on the web, he probably wouldn't have taken his life. This teen even wrote that he was going to go jump off the bridge on his facebook, adding that he was sorry. 


It's seriously sickening how some people think it's fun to make fun of others and tease them because they're different. IT'S OKAY TO BE DIFFERENT, UNIQUE, and YOURSELF. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise. It's just not right for others to bully others for being a certain way, a way they think is wrong. 


Surprisingly this book I read is about suicide, and the snowball effect, how just small incidents can lead to big events. 


Synopsis according to Barnes & Noble:

Clay Jensen returns home from school to find a mysterious box with his name on it lying on his porch. Inside he discovers cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker–his classmate and crush–who committed suicide two weeks earlier. 

On tape, Hannah explains that there are thirteen reasons why she decided to end her life. Clay is one of them. If he listens, he'll find out how he made the list. 

Through Hannah and Clay's dual narratives, debut author Jay Asher weaves an intricate and heartrending story of confusion and desperation that will deeply affect teen readers.


My Review:


I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and I feel as if others, no matter what your age, will too. I mean I didn't enjoy the fact that Hannah killed herself, but I did enjoy the message it sent to me, as well as, I'm sure, other readers. 


The book relays all the tapes, and therefore shows Hannah's side of the story, as well as the one, out of 13 people, who receives the tapes, Clay. Page after page, we listen to Hannah on her tapes, and Clay's thoughts about the whole situation. 


I wish I could've stopped her. I wish in the end, it all seemed to be a cruel joke she had been playing on everyone; even though I knew she killed herself, I wanted the ending to be happy, with her alive. The book ended on a happy note, and yet I was still begging for Hannah to be alive. 


It just goes to show you that all of life's little incidents can greatly affect a person's life, so much that they form a ball, a snowball, and just get bigger and bigger, as they roll through the years. So next time you make fun of someone, think of how their life might be at home, or with their friends, or at work. It might not be that great, and you might only be adding to their sadness, or anger; eventually forcing them to do something they thought they weren't capable of doing, whether it be killing themselves, bringing a gun to school, etc. Be kind, people are allowed to be different. Also, don't believe everything you say about someone. I bet, if you started a rumor about yourself, say sleeping with someone? By the time it gets back to you, it might be something like you slept with 10 guys/girls one night at a party while you were drunk. Try it I dare you. It's not fun to be made fun of or talked about now is it?


My Rating - 5 stars.