Thirteen Reasons Why
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Would this be ok for a thirteen year old?
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Lexi
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Feb 23, 2009 10:37AM
If not, what is the bad content of the book, swear words,violence, sexuality, etc
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Just having read the synopsis, I wouldn't give this title to a 13-year old. A suicide note from a teen peer would be bad enough, but this poor kid has received a series of audio tapes from the now dead teen. This sounds really tough.
Heavy subject matter. It would depend on the 13 y.o. but I would say no.
i dont want my daughter in middle school to read it yet, but i run a book club in nyc with hs students, we are reading this and they actually asked to scheduele an extra book club, we read it outloud, because theyre sp engrossed one 17 year old said "this book is really about us".The main character is dead and other than that very easy to relate to.
i'm fourteen right now, but i just recently turned fourteen last thursday. i first want to say, overall, it was a really good book and i would recommend it for girl teens who can handle something deep and emotional. but while i was reading this book, i had a mix of emotions. at times i laughed at the light humor, and other times i was disgusted by the sexual things the author wrote. i liked the romance between Hannah and Clay, the suspense, humor, and deep compassion that the characters in the book displayed.
but at times it made me feel sad and empty, and when i finished the book i found myself sortof scared. what if i feel that way later, when i'm in highschool? or what if someone reads this book and gets the idea of committing suicide, and recording tapes right before she committs it, just like Hannah did?
basically, it really depends on how mature this thirteen year old is, because she could get really scared, or she could enjoy it, but i can truly imagine someone young puking because of this book. mostly because of the suicide.
I support Madelaine's opinion. Some 13-year-olds aren't ready for this, but plenty of them would feel very spoken to, even though the story is about an older age group.
Well, in my opinion it would be ok in some circimstances. I am only 12 and I thought this book was truely touching and a great story. It had some innapropriate launguage, sexual content, and drinking but otherwise it was ok for a mature 13 year old.
Madelaine-I agree. I was disgusted at times and very touched at times. It did scare me as well.
I have taught middle school girls now for 17 years, and I do not recommend this book to them yet. The content is mature--and I would not feel comfortable putting that read into the hands of 13 year old girls whose hormones are already giving them a whirl---I mean they wake up in adifferent mood everyday.
I think some very mature 13 year olds might benefit from reading this, but I know I wouldn't give it to my 13 year old sister. There is more than one sex scene, some underage drinking, and suicide. That isn't to say that it's a bad book, I'm 100% glad I read it and it made me want to be a better person in the end, but in my opinion is best saved for older readers.
Yeah, I think it depends on the 13 year old who is reading it. Some can take it, and some might not be able to. I think I was 13 or 14 (sometime in middle school) when I read this, and I really liked the book.
I'd wait a year or two (or three or four).
I don't think a 13 year old will fully understand the emotions. But, I do think a mature 13 year old will be able to understand. People can get a lot from this book so think they should definitely read this at some point.
Depends on the 13 year old actually. I would let my son (who is 13) read this book and I have let my daughter read it - who is now 17 - but I am speaking for my child, knowing my kid I would say go ahead AND letting him/her know that at anytime they could not finish or stop and discuss with me.Again, my kid. And really I think everyone should read it once. It says alot about how we treat people and the repurcussions of that treatment - whether it be today, tomorrow, or in the unforceeable future.
i agree... it depends on the maturity of the 13-year-old i mean im 13 and i read it but i also read a lot of books with violence and sexuality and swearing cs i love those kind of books so yeah it depends.... but i read i and yeah nothing changed. but it is sad and i cried :(
I read this last summer for my summer homework for my class and I was seventeen. I found it a very quick read and loved it because it opened my eyes to what could be happening at my high school. My younger brother is 13 and I would say no if he had asked to read it just because I don't think he would understand all of it completely. I think it would be best to read it when entering high school instead of middle school due to some of the references.
I don't think that it's a problem. I've just turned thirteen and I read this book and it was fine. However if you're not comfortable with reading a book that contains mild sex,verbal abuse and a suicidal remarks and actions, I suggest you don't read this book :)
I read this just after I'd turned thirteen so I'd say yea <3
I read this when i was 13 as well and i loved it, but i would not recommend it to any 13 year old. Only a mature open-minded 13 year old can fully understand this and relate to it without being negatively affected by it. So yh... =D xx
im 13 and i love this book i read it when i was 11 and i think 13 year olds should read it becuase it could really happen and u need to think before u do somethings
i don't think i'll let my 14 yar old cousin read it because it's kind of depressing. i won't recomend this book to 13 year olds maybe if ur like 15 and up..... idk that's just my opinion
I have read it and im turning 12. I would say that most thirteen year olds wouldn't be ready for it either. It was a little confusing for me so I agree with alot of you. I should have waited to read it but once i started it was hard to stop. It was very interesting.
Honestly, probably not but either way I really HATED this book. I didn't read it for a few years because my name is Hannah and I thought it would be kind of creepy to read about a girl named Hannah who committed suicide but eventually I just broke down and decided to read it and honestly it was horrible. Hannah's recordings were strange and she was so cryptic and while I can understand that she is definitely set up by the author as a person who would commit suicide, it was still really weird, and also a book like it that I didn't like was Before I Fall, same idea and honestly books on the topic of suicide are so strange, don't think that I just don't understand what's going through the characters and author's mind during the story- I just still think that they're strange
I work in a middle school library and have girls asking for this book all the time but we don't have it because of the content. That said, I liked it and would probably let the students who are asking about it read it if we had a copy. I recommend Speak (which we do have) to the same students and that also has mature situations. Not all thirteen year olds are ready for this content. It really depends on the child and their ability to handle real world situations. I would let my thirteen year old son read this book but there are some of my students that I would not recommend this book to.
Yeah, I'd really recommend Speak instead, mainly for the reasons Madelaine listed - Speak's version of high school isn't as frightening (and it deals with some of the same themes, though not as intensely), and there was a certain glorification/martyrdom to Hannah's suicide that I can see young teenagers taking the wrong messages from.
I know everyone has already said what i wanted to say, but i still want to write it down anyways lol. This book was great and it should be read by kids who can handle the mixed emotions and topics that this book discusses. It just shows that ANY type of bullying or harassment whether you think its bad or not could REALLY damage someone. Also it shows that you may think someone has it all, but in reality they probably think the total opposite.
This book should not be for anybody, especially a 13 year old. I must say, at first I liked this book, but now I think it's terrible. Everybody has been hurt by someone before. This book makes it seem like if the condition is bad enough, suicide might be OK. Kind of like a "desprate times call for desprate measures" sort of thing. Also, it glorifies suicide as a way to get back at the people that have hurt you. I honestly feel like this book should have never been written, and I am hoping beyond hope they never make a movie of it. Nobody should be exposed to something that leads to that kind of thinking, especially a horomonal and easy-to-influence 13 year old
I was thirteen when I read this book and I really liked it. Although it does have some mature scenes, it really depends on who is reading it and their mautrity level. I kind of think that mature teenage girls should read it because it sort of shows how if you do do these things -underage drinking, rape, things expressed in this book- than it can serverely effect someone else's life.
Depends on the thirteen year old like everyone said. It's very heavy and serious reading material. If the person is impressionable I'd say no. In general I'd say no as well.
I think so, considering its one of my favorites, and i just turned 14
Well im 16 and i just read it a few weeks ago i let my lil brother read and he just turned 13 so i gess it would be.But it is a very serious read.
Well.. I read it when I was 13 and I loved it... soooo
Umm if your a mature 13 year old then yeah, but maybe if your not you should wait untill your 14
I read this book while I was 12 years old and I was and am still going through the same things, mentally not physically, that Hannah went through. This book is important to me and while it might "make it seem like suicide is ok" as some of you said earlier, it also might help a lot of people realize how drastic suicide really is.
I'm 13 and i read it. I thought it was good.
Ummm, I am 15 and I read it, but it might not be the best for a 13 year old..
My cousin was twelve when she read it, but it's up to you really.
depends on the kid, I read this when I was 13. I would say yes though, its important for teens to know how drastic suicide really is. Me& my friend asked the reading teacher at our school to put it on the suggested reading list for 7th grade.
Well, I'm pretty sure I was thirteen when I read it. I absolutely loved it then. I really depends on the maturity level. Have they read books like this before? It's pretty heavy, so I would say to use discretion, but it isn't an absolute no-no.
I see a lot of 13 year olds read this but I must say that when I was working in the bookstore and someone would ask me about this books, I always, always said high school. This is a heavy read and I know some 13 year olds can handle it but it really depends on the child and the family.
I'm thirteen but I read some really inappropriate books that aren't really for my age, but I have read worse. I think of it's a mature thirteen year old they can handle it.
i don't necesarilly think it has much to do with how mature the person is. It does make it seen like it's saying that suicide is ok, but it really isin't. It shows more of what the consequences of what could happen if you do drugs, binge drink, or take advantage of someone at a young age.
Mia wrote: "i don't necesarilly think it has much to do with how mature the person is. It does make it seen like it's saying that suicide is ok, but it really isin't. It shows more of what the consequences of ..."by mature, I mean they won't care of about some of the things the books contains, like rape and drinking, cuz I know some kids who just don't read serious books
actually the book isnt too mature it just shows hows simple moves can lead to reasons why a person killed themselves...it was depressing but i still liked it
more serious than mature
I think it would be fine for a 13 year old to read it,but it would probably be best to wait until they are in high school.
I let my daughter read it when she was 13. We talked about it afterwards. She wasn't upset after having read some of the things that happened to Hannah. In fact, she mostly thought that Hannah didn't do enough to help herself and took the "easy way out".
It seems like 13 year olds are a bit more advanced than they used to be. I think this book would be a great book for middle school kids to read. It really shows that actions do have consequences. And in this era of electronic everything kids sometimes don't get to see what their hurtful texts or status posts do to another person. This book makes you really think about how you may have affected other people.
I would, absolutely. I have 5 children, 23, 21, 18, 13, & 11 & I read it after my 18 yr old daughter did. I think she was 14 at the time, & she handed it to me & said Mom, you HAVE to read this. Those that think it's too mature for a young teen obviously don't realize JUST how mature kids ARE at this age nowadays. They are MUCH mature than those of my generation were at the same age. Nowadays, it's not unusual for kids that age to KNOW someone who has actually committed suicide, or that will by the time they graduate.
I have read it all the way through and would have said yes until the final two chapters. There is a hot tub scene that is very graphic. A lot of the issues the narrator deals with are also things most high school students would relate to better than middle school. I have made the decision NOT to put this book in my middle school library because I do not think it is appropriate for that age group.
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