“Everything… affects everything.”

How would you behave if you took the time to ponder the far-reaching consequences of seemingly inconsequential actions? How would speak about and treat others if you could even begin to grasp the magnitude of how your words may affect them?

The mantra we teach children, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me,” we know not to be true. In fact, according to Jewish tradition, speaking ill of someone and embarrassing them is considered akin to murder. “Thirteen Reasons Why” by Jay Asher (a secular novel) demonstrates in a very clear and shocking manner exactly why that is the case.

“Thirteen Reasons Why” tells the story of how 13 individuals contributed to the deterioration of one girl’s mental state until she was ultimately driven to commit the unspeakable final act of suicide. Some acts and words directed towards her were decidedly worse than others. Sometimes, as in the case of the narrator, a “contributor” finds it unfathomable to even be included on this list. In his head, he has never done anything to harm her. In fact, quite the opposite; the narrator longed for and deeply cared for the young lady who took her life. While the narrator feels guilt over the thought of having any part, even unintentionally, to this girl’s demise, we find that at least one person on the list, even after understanding why he’s included on it, still refuses to accept any responsibility and it bears no weight upon his conscience.

But regardless of the reaction of any character in the book, the story serves to teach its readers an important lesson. Words and actions matter. Actions and words that may seem inconsequential at the time or may be viewed as a joke, may, in actuality, be enormously impactful. Seemingly trite actions and words (or non-actions and withholding speech) may help uplift a person or, in other circumstances, may tragically, even if unintentionally, inflict a great amount of harm upon someone else. In so many instances, words are thrown around carelessly. There is no great thought as to their consequences and, often times, there is no intention to cause everlasting damage. But, as this moving novel demonstrates, it’s hard, almost impossible, to predict the extent of their impact.

This is an important, serious book, yet a very interesting, fast read. I highly recommend it to all readers, especially the teenagers and young adults it’s targeted toward. With the recent wave of teenage suicides and internet bullying, it is now more important than ever to make young people  (and adults alike) realize the everlasting repercussions of how they treat others. This book not only drives home this point very clearly, it does so in an original, captivating way. The book offers mystery, drama, and is so intriguing that I couldn’t put it down.