I don't even know how many times I cried while reading this book. It's so sad, and it makes you feel so completely and utterly helpless. IT'S HORRIBLE. BUT I LOVE IT. And I think you will, too. On with the explaining:
So we start the book off by having the main character (Clay Jensen) shipping off a mysterious box to some unknown person. Then come the flashbacks. When Clay received the box, he had no clue that he was about to step into the world of Hannah Baker, the girl who no more than a few weeks ago took her own life. How, you may be wondering. Well, here's the thing: this wasn't a spur of the moment kind of thing; Hannah had been planning this (unless she could avoid it) for some time now. And just what is in the box? Tapes.
These tapes document the final days of Hannah's life. There are thirteen reasons why Hannah is dead. If you're listening to the tapes, you're one of them.
As Hannah goes through the days and the weeks and the names, you feel yourself going "No, no, no- don't treat her like that! Can't you see what she's going through?!?" And you find yourself holding onto that little thread of hope that maybe, just maybe, she won't kill herself this time through. Even though you know it's impossible, you still pray that maybe things can be changed; maybe time can be rewritten.
And as we see the "snowball effect" that Hannah talks about coming to life, we realize that we hold the key to happiness or depression, friend or enemy, and even life or death.
Every action counts. You never know when you may be one of the reasons why.
This is such a sad book, but it also gives you hope. I recommend it to anyone who likes books that have a deeper meaning. From the very beginning, this book makes you want to find out what really happened to Hannah. The anxiety you feel when you finally get to how Clay fits into the tapes is unbearable, and it's hard not to skip ahead to his tape earlier in the book.
Clay is such a good character, and he genuinely liked Hannah, so he is desperate to find out how he could have saved her, if he could have at all. And Hannah... goodness, Hannah is the kind of character that you like from the start. She's sarcastic, witty, nice, and she really does try to find help for herself. The problem is... no one wants to help. Again, you feel so helpless, and you want to reach out and hug her and say "I'LL BE YOUR FRIEND!". The plot is so pulling that you can't put the book down. It's a physical impossibility.
The moral of this story is so deep; it makes you feel really badly about the way you talk to/act towards people sometimes. Always think about how you treat people. Every word, every action, every emotion counts. Don't be a reason why.
Amazingly well written, really sad, extremely good- awesome-sauce stamp of approval.
Thanks for reading~
~Shay~
No comments:
Post a Comment