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rj_owen's review against another edition
2.0
Before I write my feelings on this book, I want to remind those reading it, that it is a work of fiction. And fiction is written for one purpose only: to entertain people (two purposes if you count raking in tons of money, but let's forget that is why some people write books these days for a moment.)
The concept of Thirteen Reasons Why didn't seem like something I would be interested in, however so many seemed to like it that I thought I would give it a chance. A girl, Hannah Baker, commits suicide and then sends out these audio tapes to the people who were ultimately the reasons why she killed herself. The story follows Clay Jensen (one of the person on the tapes) as he listens to her story and goes to the locations she indicates around town to, I guess, somehow gain more insight into what happened.
I have a couple issues with this book. Firstly, the supposed reasons Hannah has for killing herself....ridiculous. Wow, I was expecting something a bit more...deep or traumatizing. The two most affecting stories she had to tell, (and I truly HATE to say this) she really got into them herself, almost as if she knew what was going to happen. If you read it, I think you would see what I am referring to. Hannah real wasn't even likable either because of what she was doing to the people who really hadn't done anything wrong to her (Clay and Tony). As I was reading it I could definitely see that this is what a grown man felt a teenage girl would apparently kill herself over. I understand the need to warn kids about the pressures of high school and harm of bullying or creating rumors, but this particular instance was not really an enjoyable piece of writing. And like I said before, that is the reason for reading fiction books.
Secondly, the simultaneous narration of Clay and Hannah was hard to follow. I would say I read at a fairly moderate pace and since every other sentence was another narrator, I became confused quite easily and had to go back and reread to make sure I knew what was happening with each one of them. I understand the necessity for it and I can't say that it was done poorly, but it wasn't something I personally enjoyed.
I don't think this book would really help anyone in anyway if that was an underlying goal. It is just another piece of fluff in a genre that already has too much.
Follow my reviews at http://lostinabookstore.blogspot.com/
The concept of Thirteen Reasons Why didn't seem like something I would be interested in, however so many seemed to like it that I thought I would give it a chance. A girl, Hannah Baker, commits suicide and then sends out these audio tapes to the people who were ultimately the reasons why she killed herself. The story follows Clay Jensen (one of the person on the tapes) as he listens to her story and goes to the locations she indicates around town to, I guess, somehow gain more insight into what happened.
I have a couple issues with this book. Firstly, the supposed reasons Hannah has for killing herself....ridiculous. Wow, I was expecting something a bit more...deep or traumatizing. The two most affecting stories she had to tell, (and I truly HATE to say this) she really got into them herself, almost as if she knew what was going to happen. If you read it, I think you would see what I am referring to. Hannah real wasn't even likable either because of what she was doing to the people who really hadn't done anything wrong to her (Clay and Tony). As I was reading it I could definitely see that this is what a grown man felt a teenage girl would apparently kill herself over. I understand the need to warn kids about the pressures of high school and harm of bullying or creating rumors, but this particular instance was not really an enjoyable piece of writing. And like I said before, that is the reason for reading fiction books.
Secondly, the simultaneous narration of Clay and Hannah was hard to follow. I would say I read at a fairly moderate pace and since every other sentence was another narrator, I became confused quite easily and had to go back and reread to make sure I knew what was happening with each one of them. I understand the necessity for it and I can't say that it was done poorly, but it wasn't something I personally enjoyed.
I don't think this book would really help anyone in anyway if that was an underlying goal. It is just another piece of fluff in a genre that already has too much.
Follow my reviews at http://lostinabookstore.blogspot.com/
danoreading's review against another edition
5.0
Really engrossing, couldn't put it down sort of novel. Highly recommended by my YA loving coworkers, and I couldn't agree with them more. Good stuff.
ida2121's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
smsienk's review against another edition
3.0
I read this after watching the show - actually liked the show better
It’s a good book handling a tough topic, but it was one of the rare occurrences when the subject was better handled through a visual, multidimensional depiction rather than a novel. The show was able to give each character more depth and breadth than the book could. I wish the point was more clear that the final decision was Hannah’s - it’s there, but subtle. And I wish there were more follow up with the other characters - copy cat suicides are extremely common, and receiving something like these tapes would likely increase that risk.
It’s a good book handling a tough topic, but it was one of the rare occurrences when the subject was better handled through a visual, multidimensional depiction rather than a novel. The show was able to give each character more depth and breadth than the book could. I wish the point was more clear that the final decision was Hannah’s - it’s there, but subtle. And I wish there were more follow up with the other characters - copy cat suicides are extremely common, and receiving something like these tapes would likely increase that risk.
jessicaleahreads's review against another edition
4.0
This is a very bittersweet book about a girl's journey towards suicide and the situations and people who influenced her. Great book for parents and high schoolers; as a parent its a great reminder to keep yourself involved in the lives of our children. And for youth- hopefully a big eye opener to push them to think about how their interactions affect their peers. Makes me terrified to have to send my kids to high school and pray that they won't come upon these situations or at least will make smart decisions if they do.
vanessarenee16's review against another edition
4.0
This book is tragic because you witness someone’s life unraveling and them deciding to give up. It makes you wonder if you were in that situation at that age would you also give up? Another huge part of this book that everyone could gain something from is that you never know what someone is going through and you never know how weighted your actions are to someone else. Great writing
heartzfromli_'s review against another edition
dark
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
mvasso's review against another edition
2.0
I expected a lot from this book--it won the Gateway Award last year--but I didn't enjoy it at all. I liked the narrator, Clay, but I don't feel like I ever really got to know him. The main problem was that I didn't sympathize with Hannah (the girl who killed herself). I did feel bad about some of the things she went through, but I don't think her life was so terrible that she had to kill herself. Yes, kids can be cruel in high school, but she wasn't consistently bullied like so many kids are. She had a few bad incidents, but who doesn't? She did witness some awful crimes--a rape and a drunk driving incident that indirectly caused a death--and blamed herself for not stopping them, but those things didn't occur until after she had already made up her mind to kill herself. She came off as overdramatic to me, both in the way she reacted to her problems and the way that she made the suicide tapes.The only reason that I finished the book is that I wanted to see what happens in the end. I was expecting to discover that some big horrifying thing had happened to Hannah that would explain why she really committed suicide, but that wasn't the case. The one thing that I do like about "Thirteen Reasons Why" is that it demonstrates how little things people do for/to each other--both good and bad--can have a big impact on someone else's life, and we need to be conscious of how we treat other people in everything that we do. It's a great message, but I think it could have been presented in a much better way.
ajax's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25