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Review: "Thirteen Reasons Why" by Jay Asher

From Goodreads:  Clay Jensen returns home from school to find a mysterious box with his name on it lying on his porch. Inside he discovers thirteen cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker, his classmate and crush who committed suicide two weeks earlier.

My Thoughts:  I am still not really sure how I feel about this book.  It was like nothing I have ever read and it just infuriated me.  I was so angry at Hannah for most of the book and the main reason I plowed through the book was because I wanted to see how things would turn out for Clay.  I felt kind of bad for Hannah, she did have to deal with some major bullying but there were also other things that happened that she had complete control over but still tried to blame on other people.  She put herself in some really bad situations and then rather than talking to a friend or her parents, she just gave up and tried to play the victim.  I have a really hard time with the fact that she blamed EVERYONE for her suicide and not once looked at herself and her actions.  Some of the people she went to school with were bad people but that doesn’t mean it’s their fault that she made the choice to end her life.   Her attitude just started to really piss me off as the book went on.  I also felt really bad that Clay, a decent guy who had not done anything wrong, got dragged into her game.  He was such a kindhearted character and would have been a good friend to her if she had tried.  I don’t really know what else to say about this book other than I can’t really give it a star rating.  I am glad I read it but I don’t know how I could ever rate it.
On tape, Hannah explains that there are thirteen reasons why she decided to end her life. Clay is one of them. If he listens, he'll find out how he made the list.
Through Hannah and Clay's dual narratives, debut author Jay Asher weaves an intricate and heartrending story of confusion and desperation that will deeply affect teen readers.

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