Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

Target Audience: Teens/Young Adults
Genre: Fiction

If i'm asked why i liked this book i find it very difficult to describe why because unless you've read it, it's hard to understand exactly what message this book conveys to the reader, so i'll have to settle for simply expressing my personal opinion.

The main story is about a girl called Hannah who committed suicide a couple of weeks earlier and left tapes which tell the reasons why she did what she did. Clay Jensen, a friend of Hannah's, receives these tapes, all of which he listens to, knowing full well that if you are given the tapes then your one of the reasons why.

I found this story extremelly moving and shocking, so much so that at one point i just stared at the pages in disbelief. Having been left school a while now, it's easy to forget the casual cruelty that goes on there and the pain it causes others, and this was a stark reminder.

What procedes to happen throughout the book is the snowball effect, in which one thing leads to another, and ultimately leads to Hannah's life becoming more and more unbearable. What becomes obvious is that what may appear to be a small joke or minor insult from one person eventually can become so much more and have a knock on effect which has devestating consequences.

The meaning of the book to me was that just by being a little more considerate and treating people with a bit more kindness, can make all the difference to a decision someone makes about their life and that ultimately we should consider the consequences of our actions.

On a more positive note, the book ends with a ray of hope in the form of Clay possibly being able to save someone else heading down a similar path as Hannah, and that to me, was the most amazing part, that something with the potential for good can come out of such a tragic event, and change so many peoples lives.