13+Reasons+Why+Book+Rationale+(Bartley)

__**Book Rationale for 13 Reasons Why by Jay Asher**__
__**by Ashley Bartley**__

In his thought-provoking novel //13 Reasons Why//, Jay Asher addresses the very tough issue of teen suicide in a unique and original way. Clay, the main character, arrives home one day to find a box addressed to him on his doorstep. Inside that box, he finds tapes recorded by his classmate, Hannah Baker, who has recently committed suicide. As he listens to the tapes, Hannah takes him (and the reader) on an emotional journey through her life and the events leading to her death. This book would open the door to a lot of deep conversation that would probably only be appropriate for high school students. The reading itsself is not hard--the language is fairly simple--but the issues and feelings that it brings up are meant for an older audience.

Aside from bringing tough conversations to the table, //13 Reasons Why// also allows students to dive into some interesting literary topics. The book is told in a dual narrative, narrated by Hannah's voice on the tapes and Clays internal monologue as he listens. The style in which Asher writes these two voices is very unique and students would gain a lot of experience with dual narrative. Clay's portion of the narrative is almost a stream of consciousness, which is very valuable since there aren't very many modern texts that provide a readable narrative of this nature. The book also introduces literary devices such as irony (sarcasm) and would provide the students with many different antagonists to discuss and dissect.