[Giveaway] Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher PAPERBACKS w/ teaser for next book - INTERNATIONAL!

The news: 

To celebrate the paperback release of Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher, I've been lucky enough to SHARE the amazement with you! Yes that's right - a giveaway!

Supplied by the lovely folks over at Big Honcho Media are TWO paperback copies of Thirteen Reasons Why. The special thing about these paperbacks is that they include a teaser for Asher's new book (that he only wrote half of!, ARC pictured left).

On May 12, 2011, Penguin launched the 13RW Project at www.13RWProject.com, as a place for fans of Thirteen Reasons Why to record their thoughts, stories, videos and photos relating to the book, and to view what other readers from all across the country have shared. Each review is logged on a map to show the many locations that viewers are posting from, and all content is shareable through Facebook and Twitter.

There are plans for this Project to be taken internationally in the future. I'll be happy when I can post my own review snippet on the site! It's a huge thing, and trust me - you're going to want to be a part of this. Hundreds of people have already taken this in and have participated.

The book: 

My review

Title: Thirteen Reasons Why {goodreads}
Author: Jay Asher - seriously, he's funny as cheese! {site}
Publisher: Razorbill (Imprint of Penguin)
Release date: 20/06/11 {buy it!}
Pages: 288

About the book:

Thirteen Reasons Why is the story of a girl named Hannah Baker who takes her own life. But before she does, she records several cassette tapes explaining why and sends them to the people she feels pushed her toward that decision. The story is told from the point of view of Clay Jensen who spends the night crisscrossing his town with Hannah’s voice as his guide. He becomes a first-hand witness to Hannah’s pain, and learns the truth about himself—a truth he never wanted to face.

The anti-bullying anthem was published in hardcover in October 2007 by Razorbill, and quickly became a word-of-mouth favorite among teenaged readers with fans claiming, “This book changed my life.” The novel has been on the New York Times children’s hardcover bestseller list for 65 weeks, foreign rights have been sold into 30 countries and it has been acquired by Universal Pictures and will star Selena Gomez.

About the author:

Jay Asher lives on the central coast of California with his wife and son. His favorite part of being an author is speaking with his readers at schools and libraries across the country. 

The giveaway: 

Details

• Run date: 24/06/11 - 02/07/11
• Prize: x2 New paperback copies of Thirteen Reasons Why
• Location: International!
• Requirements: None.
• Extra entries: +1, spread the word (Twitter, Facebook, blog post or blog sidebar)
• All entrants must be aged 13+, and address is asked with entry so that winners can be sent their prizes as soon as the contest ends.
  

Good luck everyone! Fill out the FORM to enter.

Waiting on Wednesday (31)

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill @ Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

~~~
 

(in order of release date)

Title: The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight {goodreads}
Author: Jennifer E. Smith
Release Date (dd/mm/yy): 02/01/12
Publisher: Poppy

Why am I waiting on this?

Beautiful cover, and it has a "Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist", "Amy & Roger's Epic Detour) vibe to it. I'm thinking this is going to be a totally cute and fun contemp read!

Title: The Future of Us {goodreads}
Author: Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler
Release Date (dd/mm/yy): 21/11/1
Publisher: Razorbill

Why am I waiting on this?

Jay Asher: awesome guy. Everyone seems to love him. Haven't read any of Mackler's yet. Can't wait for this book - it sounds different and thought-provoking.

Anyone read any of these in advance?
I'd love to hear what you thought!

Thanks for visiting my weekly WoW post. ♥

Comment with your WoW post and I'll check it out!

[Re-Review] Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

Title: Thirteen Reasons Why

Author: Jay Asher

Publication: 2009

Publisher: Razorbill (Penguin)

Source: Won, thanks Jay Asher!
Age: 14+ (some sexual content and language, but the issue explored needs to be heard by younger teens)

Pages: 280

My Rating:

Summary:

Clay Jensen returns home from school to find a mysterious box with his name on it lying on his porch. Inside he discovers several cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker--his classmate and crush--who committed suicide two weeks earlier. On tape, Hannah explains that there are thirteen reasons why she decided to end her life. Clay is one of them. If he listens, he'll find out how he made the list. Through Hannah and Clay's dual narratives, debut author Jay Asher weaves an intricate and heartrending story of confusion and desperation that will deeply affect teen readers.

My thoughts: 

Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher spun me around and around--so much so that I felt just as lost and confused and hurt that Clay felt as he was listening to the suicide tapes of a girl he could've loved. Asher does not shy away from exploring the painful but gripping issue that comes attached with growing up and feeling as though reality is slipping away from you. Hannah Baker earned herself a reputation that she by no means deserved. A reputation that she earned through a rumour based on just a kiss. Clay Jenson is a protagonist and narrator both reliable and realistic in his portrayal, and Asher made a great decision to choose such a character to drive this narrative.





Clay Jenson comes home from school to find a mysterious box, full of audiotapes, each marked numerically by nail polish. Once he finds a way to listen to said tapes, he makes a remarkable discovery: these tapes outline the thirteen reasons why Hannah Baker, the girl who killed herself two weeks earlier, came to her life-ending decision, "and if you're listening to these tapes, you're one of the reasons why".

The scenes and 'reasons why' are told with great care, and I think it's only after I've re-read it that I was able to piece things together a lot better than I did the first time around. Many people have criticised Thirteen Reasons Why, as supposedly the reasons listed should not, would not, have been enough for someone to end their life, but while I was reading it, I could feel it. How trapped and devoid she was of anything secure or safe in her life, that she so needed, especially then. People were continuously letting her down, and she continued to believe that maybe someone could've helped her to not give up on herself. The reasons, every action, in itself are for the most part seemingly harmless. But when you look at the full picture, the links add up and it's astounding to think that this does happen in real life. That one small action could start a "snowball effect". If there's anything that I'll be taking away from this book, it's that "everything . . . affects everything" (which is what Asher signed my book with)



Hannah Baker was unlucky, in that she was targeted for unfair ridicule and judgement, just so that kids at school could have a good laugh every now and then. And at its core, that is what many, many high school kids would actually do, without really thinking about how that could affect someone's mental state. Clay Jenson is the average all-around good guy at school. His interactions and stories seemed true to life, and in the back of my copy, Asher does say that some of these events are based on his own experiences, which I always appreciate. The thing I love about these types of books, is that there is such an obvious space for character development, and that is what Clay does. He develops into a wiser, stronger, narrator--even in his strife and fury.


Last time I gave this book a 4.5/5 (and yes, I am embarrassed by my earliest reviews, as all bloggers would be), but this time I cannot give it anything lower than a 5. It's one of those life-altering novels, but it was a real page-turner despite how hard it could be to read at times. It made me cry, it made me laugh, it made me disgusted and angry and hurt and annoyed and feel as though I were right in Hannah's, and Clay's, shoes, feeling her pain and stifled cries for help. 

It's a book I would urge everyone to read. Please, put this book on your bucket list.

Quotes:

First Lines

""Sir?"she repeats. "How soon do you want it to get there?"
I rub two fingers, hard, over my left eyebrow. The throbbing has become intense. "It doesn't matter," I say."


Favourite Quotes

"I guess that's the point of it all. No one knows for certain how much impact they have on the lives of other people. Oftentimes, we have no clue. Yet we push it just the same."

(pg. 156, Hannah)

"You can't go back to how things were. How you thought they were.

All you really have . . . is now."

(pg. 206, Hannah)

Buy:

Live in Australia?

Fishpond | Readings | Dymocks | Angus & Robertson | Borders | The Nile

Live elsewhere?

Amazon | The Book Depository

Links:

Official Site
Goodreads Page


I have received this review copy in return for an honest review.

Challenge: --

Book Tunes (1): Thirteen Reasons Why

"Book Tunes is a new meme that will be held on Fridays and the point is to share the book you're reading and a song you think represents it. Be sure to include the novel you are reading, the summary, the song you think fits it and an explanation of why you chose that particular song. So snag yourself a button, write a post and link up at the bottom of the page!"

With every post that I do, I'll be linking a few youtube vids with a description below explaining why I believe this song matches with the book. Always open to suggestions -- I love finding new music!

I am currently re-reading Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher, and I've got a boatload of songs that would match up to the mood of the book perfectly. But I'll be linking just a few. ;)

1. Misunderstood by Bon Jovi

First off, hilarious video. And in Thirteen Reasons Why, Clay continuously adds that he so wanted to help Hannah, but she never asked. If you take this song out of its intended context, it actually makes a lot of sense. And such is the beauty of music and art.

2. How to Save A Life by The Fray (of course!)

Click here for videos

This song . . . everyone's heard it. If you haven't, you're either too young or too old. :P So yeah this is probably the no-brainer song.

3. No More Wishing by Hayley Taylor



I've loved this song since I heard it on How I Met Your Mother. Not an exact match, but in respect to Hannah and Clay's should've-been relationship, this song just fits.

4. Memory by Sugarcult

Other than the totes amazing video, I think this song would pinpoint Clay's consistent wishes that he could go back to the party when he "lost" her. 

Listen to the lyrics.

Book Information

Title: Thirteen Reasons Why {goodreads}
Author: Jay Asher
Release Date: 2009

Synopsis: Clay Jensen returns home from school to find a mysterious box with his name on it lying on his porch. Inside he discovers cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker—his classmate and crush—who committed suicide two weeks earlier.

On tape, Hannah explains that there are thirteen reasons why she decided to end her life. Clay is one of them. If he listens, he’ll find out how he made the list.

Through Hannah and Clay’s dual narratives, debut author Jay Asher weaves an intricate and heartrending story of confusion and desperation that will deeply affect teen readers.

*If you link up, starting next month, I'll be giving away a book at the end of every month. Every time you do a post, you get a point do you can get SIX entries for next month! Winner gets to pick what they'd like from The Book Depository! Please link up to enter and put your email in the comment section. Can't wait to hear some new tunes!*