Thirteen Reasons Why

At the forefront of my mind, whenever I am teaching, is the impact my words and my actions have on my students.  I try to teach students that although they may say, "Just kidding," or "I was only playing," that their words and actions have already had an impact.  Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher drives my point home.

Hannah has committed suicide; however, before she died, she created a set of tapes explaining why she felt she had no other choice but to kill herself.  13 reasons why - thirteen people who contributed to her helplessness.  She entrusted the tapes to a bystander to insure that the tapes made their journey to each of the thirteen people.  The novel follows Clay, as he listens to the tapes and learns the role he played in Hannah's life and ultimately, her death.

In Hannah's story, each person's role is not earth-shattering.  Each person who is a part of her story probably didn't even think that he or she was a contributing factor.  The fact that their part in her suicide was so small, almost innocuous is important.   It is the culmination of a series of "just kidding" or "it's a joke" comments that ultimately led Hannah to her final outcome.  Through the tapes, Hannah wanted those people to know that those little things DO matter.  I am hopeful that perhaps one or two of the characters learn from their mistakes.

Working with teenagers is a challenge and a huge responsibility.  This novel had such an impact on me, reinforcing my already steadfast belief that students need to know and understand that words had repercussions.  While this novel contains many adult situations that I consider far too mature for my 8th grade students, I think I can work around the situations and still share this book with them.  I truly hope that this book ends up on summer reading lists and perhaps even part of a curriculum.