Can I just say, the book is way better than the show? Netflix isn’t doing the best job at portraying the characters correctly but it’s being renewed for a third season, so they must be doing something right.
I read the book when I was in 7th grade and it always stuck with me because Hannah Baker really took the time to methodically record her accusations of the people around her and have them sent out to those she had accused. Off top, I thought she was crazy, but 12 year old me had been consumed by Hannah’s secrets. I thought she was the victim, that she’d done no wrong and she was just a victim of severe bullying. Her suicide was sad and it took a toll on everyone!
Now that I’m older, I know that Hannah was not the only victim. Some of what happened, she caused. If she weren’t so stuck on trying to fit in an did accepted, she would’ve known that there were people that actually did care for her. She was manipulative and wanted to be seen. She took all matters into her own hands instead of leaving it to fate and going about her life. It was lie Hannah needed attention, needed to be seen, needed to be valid through other people’s eyes.
“Death and dying has always been a popular theme for kids,” said Josalyn Moran, vice president for children’s books at Barnes & Noble. “Kids like to read about situations that are worse than theirs and figure out that ‘O.K., my life isn’t so bad.’ ”
This is a statement I agree with because those who I know have watched the series come to social media platforms to criticize the decisions of the characters and how they are thankful or what they would have done if it were them in the situation.
“Eerie, beautiful, and devastating.” —Chicago Tribune
“A stealthy hit with staying power… thriller-like pacing.” —The New York Times
“Thirteen Reasons Why will leave you with chills long after you have finished reading.” —Amber Gibson, NPR’s “All Things Considered”
“Clay Jensen returns home from school to find a strange package with his name on it lying on his porch. Inside he discovers several cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker—his classmate and crush—who committed suicide two weeks earlier. Hannah’s voice tells him that there are thirteen reasons why she decided to end her life. Clay is one of them. If he listens, he’ll find out why.”
It seems even in death that Hannah is finding a way to victimize herself and be manipulative. She’s blaming others for her death, when she was the one who took her own life. She leaves these people with all these dark secrets and expects them to pass them along, how wild is that?
Although it was a great book, I feel like it could give impressionable people the wrong idea, regardless of age. It’s up for interpretation and the enjoyment of those who can side with it, but I wouldn’t recommend it for everyone.
