“You can’t stop the future. You can’t rewind the past. The only way to learn the secret… is to press play.”
- Hanna Baker
Jay Asher has outdone himself. It was hard to turn the pages on this page turner.  It was so heart-breakingly beautiful that I couldn’t wait to turn the page, but was afraid of what tragedy would happen next. Hanna’s story will make you change the way you act towards people at school. Before Hanna commits suicide, she makes 7 tapes about the people who “killed” her. She sends them to the first person on her list, and they have to pass it on after they’ve heard them all. 13 people get the tapes, and 13 people’s lives change because of them. Throughout the book, it talks about cause and effect. It will make you think about how everything you do affects someone else. You’ll start thinking about that kid that’s being bullied at your school, or maybe an adult you were mean to. About how maybe you could’ve done something to brighten up their day. How your words affect the people around you. Jay Asher puts a new light to the way you think of the world.
Hanna and Clay will have you feeling sorry for them throughout the book. You will grow to love these characters as the story progresses. They will capture your attention. I stayed up all night just to finish the book. It consumed my attention. The pace was perfect. When it started to seem like it was going too fast, then you would get a break from Hanna and learn Clay’s thoughts. It’s like Romeo and Juliet. It’s tragic with a little hint of romance.
I recommend a mature audience. I think you should be around 14 if you’re going to read it. Terrible things happen in this book. It’s going to make you cry, and disgust you with what people are capable of.