Thirteen Reasons Why Review

Title: Thirteen Reasons Why

Author: Jay Asher

Release Date: 6^th August 2009 (UK)

Publisher: Penguin

Clay Jensen returns home to find a strange package with his name on it. Inside he discovers several cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Barker – his classmate and first love – who committed suicide two weeks earlier.

Hannah’s voice explains there are thirteen reasons why she killed herself. Clay is one of them. If he listens, he’ll find out why.

All through the night, Clay keeps listening - and what he discovers changes his life …

Forever.

Thirteen Reasons Why is the story of Hannah Baker and her suicide. Clay Jensen is one in a long number of people who have been sent cassette tapes by Hannah telling them why she decided to end her own life. At first, Hannah experiences the hardships many teenagers do and classroom banter gets out of hand. After a handful of upsetting events, Hannah begins to have suicidal thoughts and opens up to a school guidance counsellor.  However, it seems even he lets Hannah down and things finally spiral out of control as she finds herself unable to open up to anyone.  At times comical but mostly distressing and very emotionally realistic, Thirteen Reasons Why is written as a tragic duologue, but Hannah will never hear Clay’s reply. Throughout the novel Clay becomes more and more desperate to try and get through to Hannah, which makes everything more upsetting, as it is too late for her to hear him.

The story is moving as well as thought provoking, making the reader think about how our everyday actions affect others. Some of the people Hannah mentions on her tapes indirectly affected her, while others have set out to deliberately hurt her. Not only this, but the novel comes as a warning to those who feel they are in Hannah’s position. Clay is devastated by Hannah’s death and his interjections clearly display his determination to put things right. His character shows how, despite Hannah’s feeling that she is alone, there are those out there who care for her and who would have tried to help her had they known the seriousness of the situation. There are always people in life who care about us.

At the end of the book the Q and A for the author, Jay Asher, explains how many of the actions described in the book are based on real events. The audio version of Hannah’s tapes and other media from the book is available at http://www.hannahsreasons.blogspot.com/  which really brings to life elements of Hannah’s story and also gives advice on this serious subject matter. Through the journeys of both Clay and Hannah, the novel shows how everyone’s story is interlinked with others and Clay’s responses to Hannah are particularly harrowing. Overall, the novel is definitely worth reading for its composition as well as its content.  

4/5 Brings to life the reality of how our actions affect others and deals sensitively with a serious subject matter.

If you would like to talk to someone or are concerned about someone else, more information is available at http://www.samaritans.org/ or call 08457 90 90 90 (UK and Northern Ireland).

Title: The Rag and Bone Shop

Author:  Robert Cormier

Release Date: 4^th July 2002 (New edition)

Publisher: Puffin Teenage Books

Alicia Bartlett had last been seen on the patio of her home by twelve-year-old Jason Dorrant, about four o’clock on the afternoon of June twenty-ninth. Now Alicia has been brutally murdered and Jason, as the last person – except for the killer - to see her alive, is being interrogated.  Or did Jason kill Alicia? His interrogator is a man who is famous for always getting a confession from the suspect. Will he get a confession from Jason?

Jason is a quiet twelve year old boy. His friend Alicia is murdered and he is the last person to see her alive which makes him the prime suspect for the police. An unexplained playground fight meant he has a reputation for violence. However, through Jason’s thoughts, it becomes clear that things are not that straight forward. Jason appears innocent but the police are desperate to find the culprit and hire an out of town interrogator, Trent, to question Jason. Trent’s methods are tried and tested and he is confident that he can get a confession from Jason. But is Jason guilty?

Throughout the novel we see into the lives of several of the main characters and understand the motivations behind their actions. Jason is under pressure from the start of the novel to confess and things become more heated when Trent is unsure of Jason’s guilt. However, interrogating Jason, Trent has to consider his career and unbeaten record when obtaining confessions. Both Jason and Trent come out of the interrogation changed, their lives and the lives of the people around them changed forever.

The plot was really engaging as the events surrounding what happened to Alicia Bartlett unravel but this isn’t the main story. More emphasis is placed on Jason and how he responds to the pressure of being interrogated and this is what gives the story its really interesting twist. I really don’t want to give too much away as I would definitely recommend reading this book!  

The ending was really haunting, showing the devastating consequences of comparing thoughts and actions. Be prepared for a really disturbing conclusion! The novel is an easy read with a crime theme and so is suitable for anyone with an interest in this genre, although things take a psychological turn and it becomes apparent that this is much more than a whodunit.  The novel is well written and delves into the mind of the interrogator as well as the interrogated. Absolutely brilliant!

5/5 If you aren’t a fan of crime, you soon will be!    

And Baby Makes Two Review

Title: And Baby Makes Two 

                                                               

Author: Dyan Sheldon

Release Date:  2^nd October 2000

Publisher: Walker Books

All fifteen-year-old Lana dreams about is getting married and having her own flat and lots of children. It’s her life’s ambition. When she meets Les, she knows right off that he’s the one. And when she gets pregnant without even trying, she reckons that all her dreams are about to come true. Lana doesn’t wonder for a second what might happen next…

Lana is fifteen and sick of having her life ruled by her Mum and her teachers. She can’t wait to leave school and be independent. Meeting Les seems like the answer to all her dreams, he is twenty, has a job and lives in his own house (which he shares with his friends). Their dates consist of McDonald’s lunches but Lana finds herself wanting to move the relationship forward after pressure from her friends. Lana and Les spend the night together and 9 months later Lana gives birth to her daughter, Shinola. While pregnant, Lana has to face the ridicule from her classmates as well as persuading Les and her Mum that having the baby is the best option. Lana can’t imagine anything more perfect than marrying Les, moving in with him and having his baby. However, when Shinola arrives, Lana realises things are much harder than she ever anticipated. Her Mum moves out and Les disappears for weeks on end leaving Lana to get on with looking after Shinola. After financially hard times and being bypassed by her friends, who are out enjoying themselves, Lana discovers that her ideal family life is far from a reality as she is left completely alone.

I really enjoyed this book but couldn’t work out whether it was trying to warn the reader about rushing into growing up. Written as a first person account, it is obvious how naïve Lana really is. Lana lives in a dream world and doesn’t realise the severity of her situation until the end of the book. Even down to Lana’s confusion over getting pregnant, as she believes you can’t get pregnant the first time you have sex, the book deals with a lot of misconceptions surrounding teenage love, pregnancy and sex. Despite Lana’s often stupid actions, the novel is really sophisticated in dealing with the emotions surrounding this complex subject matter.

The ending is a shock which concludes a brilliantly written story and leaves questions unanswered. A must read for any teen who thinks that having a baby is an easy ride but also just a good eye opener for anyone else. The author really manages to get inside the head of a confused and misguided teenage girl.    

4.5 / 5   Cleverly written insight into the thoughts of a love struck teenage girl.

Pictures of the Night Review

Title: Pictures of the Night     

                     

Author: Adele Geras

Release Date: 3^rd January 2002

             (this is the UK re-release date)

Publisher: Red Fox

Once, Megan, Bella and Alice shared a room. The Tower Room was theirs alone, remote from the rest of Egerton Hall School and here they formed a deep friendship which would continue long after they left their enchanted world.

But now Bella thinks her life is in danger. Is her stepmother really as wicked as she believes, or can imagination sometimes be more sinister than reality?

Based loosely on the fairytale of Snow White, this is a thrilling story of jealousy and enchantment.

The novel is a lovely read, set in the 1960s. Despite being set so many years ago, the story did not feel out of place in the modern world.  Apart from the dates and cultural references such as the release of Gone with the Wind, a film Bella’s parents went to see before she was born, I felt that the novel could have been set in modern day as it was so easy to relate to.

Pictures of the Night is very typical of an emotional teenage novel written in first person from Bella’s point of view. She experiences many of things teenage girls do and we get to understand how she actually feels about things through letters she writes to her friends, Megan and Alice. Bella is a very headstrong character and gives up her spare time to sing with a band of seven young men. However, things get a little complicated when she develops an interesting relationship with Greg, one of the band members.

As mentioned on the blurb, the novel is ‘loosely’ based on Snow White and it was this that made me want to read it as it intersperses real life with the story we all love and know.  The novel is easily compared to Snow White because of the similar plot structure and characters, however, it also takes things a step further, as we would expect with a longer novel.  We are shown the development of Marjorie’s (Bella’s step-mother) hatred for Bella and how this has affected the way Bella is today. Her friends, Megan and Alice also have stories and this added depth to Bella’s life. Although Bella has to deal with aspects of life that aren’t always happy cheery, don’t worry, she does get her own happy ending in the form of a knight in shining armour.  While I always knew what was around the corner for Bella, because of the basis of the plot, there are some lovely touches to the novel, her depth of character as well as updates to the old fairy tale.  

Pictures of the Night is actually the third book in the ‘Egerton Hall’ novels and I would therefore encourage people to start from the beginning of the series with The Tower Room (it is one I am going to read). I wasn’t aware of the order of the novels (or even that it was a series) before I began reading the book and it can definitely be read as a stand alone story. However, the characters of Megan and Alice are explored in the first two novels (The Tower Room (based on Rapunzel) and Watching the Roses (based on Sleeping Beauty) ) and so I feel I have missed out a little on the back story. Overall, a really pleasant read which has left me wanting to explore the lives of the Egerton Hall girls from the beginning of the series.

4/5 Modern update of a favourite classic

Hear The Dead Cry Review

 

Title: Hear the Dead Cry

Author: Charlie Price

Release Date: 5^th August 2010

Publisher: Corgi Children’s Books

(Originally published in the USA under the title Dead Connection, 2006)

When Murray hears a terrified new voice pleading for help at the cemetery, he is convinced, it’s Nikki, a popular young cheerleader who went missing over a month ago – but who will believe him? And where is the body? Together with Pearl, the daughter of the cemetery groundskeeper, Murray must struggle to uncover the truth in a town full of secrets.

Murray is a boy who spends most of his time in the graveyard (although he insists it is called a cemetery) to escape from his mother’s troubles at home. Whilst there he speaks to the people buried in the graveyard and when a young girl goes missing he finds he can use this unusual skill to his advantage. The daughter of the graveyard groundskeeper, Pearl is annoyingly there to assist, although the two become friends as the novel progresses. While this goes on, Deputy Gates, Mister Robert Barry Compton and Public Affair’s Officer Billup are all tied in with the hunt for the missing girl. With a surprising but really gripping ending, the novel turns out to be a really good read but I felt it took a really long time to get off the ground. Couple this with the Americanisms (although this can’t really be classed as a valid criticism because the author is American and the book was originally released in America) I really struggled to be drawn into the book.

It was the cover art that originally drew me to pick up this novel as it is really haunting and beautiful. The beginning of the novel reminded me of The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (which is a brilliant book with a similar supernatural theme). But the similarities were limited to the first couple of chapters and from then on I felt I was wading through the plot. The novel is written in third person but switches focus from different characters with each chapter. I really liked this aspect of the book as it created character depth but at times it made it really hard to follow. The ending definitely brings everything back and by the finale, I was desperate to know what had happened to the missing girl, Nikki.

The development of characters was definitely the best aspect of the novel.  Nikki is introduced in the first chapter in a really eerie way and we don’t come across insights into her character again which makes it stand out even more. Robert is suffering from mental illness and it is interesting to see how other characters perceive him and how he interacts with them. Gates is desperate to solve Nikki’s disappearance while battling his own demons and Billup’s life is spiralling out of control through alcohol. Murray and Pearl find themselves thrown together in friendship, determined to locate Nikki’s body.

The novel is a young adult crime story and contains all the good elements a crime story should. However, I felt it was lacking a bit in continuation and the climax was rapid and explosive whereas the rest of the novel is slow to get off the ground. I would recommend this novel for those of you who like a bit of a mystery but it wasn’t really my cup of tea.

3/5 Brilliant characters but at times hard to follow