Thirteen reasons why you should read Thirteen Reasons Why
By Charlotte Vinall / Spinebreakers Crew
1. The novel deals with the very difficult subject of suicide extremely well.
2. The storyline is very unique- it revolves around a troubled teenager who has sent out a set of tapes to the list of people who contributed to her death shortly before she commits suicide, and through these tapes she explains to them her reasons for doing so.
3. The layout of the book is innovative- instead of dividing the book into chapters, it is divided through cassettes e.g. ‘Cassette 1: Side A’ as the protagonist proceeds through the tapes explaining the various reasons why his friend committed suicide.
4. Thirteen Reasons Why is quite fast paced and therefore does not seem to drag at any point keeping the reader constantly immersed in the novel.
5. The book essentially has two narrators, one from the past and one from the present; Hannah and Clay. The reader therefore getting varying perspectives and two sides to the story.
6. It is just the right length for a gripping teen novel at almost 300 pages in length.
7. The protagonist Clay is a very likable character and so makes the story more interesting when described from his point of view.
8. A lot of the situations which affected Hannah Baker can be related to by many, such as arguments between friends and rumours circulating.
9. A greatly important moral is sent through Jay Asher’s words- the smallest actions can lead to the greatest of consequences. Another moral which is greatly important is not to judge a book by its cover, and that people you know probably have much more depth than you may initially realise.
10. Not just pessimism is shown in this novel (which may be expected in a novel which deals with such a dark subject) has layers of hope and comic relief is awarded to the readers at several points.
11. Thirteen Reasons Why is set over a period of only one night, yet this does not make it any less gripping as the journey into the past which Hannah Baker and Clay provide the reader with, takes them away from just that shocking night where Clay listens to the tapes.
12. It has won several book awards which surely illustrates its status as a great debut novel, such as the ‘California Book Award Winner’ and ‘New York Times Bestseller’.
13. The ending leaves the reader with a range of emotions and a feeling of satisfaction at having been able to share the tale of Hannah Baker along with Clay Jensen and the others on her list.