13 Reasons Why

Thank you for dropping by today. How's it going? ^__^

To start off this blog, here's the most recent book I've read.
13 Reasons Why by Jay Asher.

I bought this as a birthday present for myself. (Bit dark for a birthday gift, wouldn't you think? You'll find out why.) 
It's about a girl, Hannah Baker, who committed suicide. But just before she ended her life, she recorded thirteen tapes about the thirteen people who each had a contributing role as to why she did what she did. The tapes were meant to be passed on to all of the thirteen people.
Clay Jensen, is the one who currently has the tapes. We follow Clay as he mazes through their town while listening to Hannah's story, their story.

What I like about this book is the two-person narrative: Hannah's story and Clay's. It blends amazingly well. It interlaces the story without creating confusion. I can hear Hannah's hurt and I can feel Clay's pain throughout the entire book. It keeps me guessing when Clay's next will come up. I held my breath every time the tape is flipped or a new tape is played. I found it brilliant how Clay's part was interjected in the story. But the part that strikes me the most half-way through the book is how one person's actions can create repercussions unimaginable. It's not just a story of how a person spirals to depression. It's vivid storytelling that digs deep. A reminder that people are not the way they are because they were born that way. More often than not, something or someone paved the road that led them to become that way. And that chances are not there to intimidate us, but are there for us to take.

I did not find it depressing. It's sad yes, yet at the same time mesmerizing. I couldn't put the book down and grudgingly did so when I had to. It's a nice break from the usual Sci-Fi and Fantasy books I've been reading. You should grab a copy or I could let you borrow mine. So what about you? What book have you read this week?


Till the next book,
Sammy