Every teen (or anyone really) should read this book simply to learn about the repercussions of actions and the dangers of rumors and "slut-shaming". Things that might seem like harmless jokes or jabs affect people in different ways, and in Hannah Baker's case, they led her to take her own life. Her audiotape narratives take you through the timeline leading to her fatal decision, showing just how much rumors of her promiscuity escalated and led to her own self-loathing and lack of trust toward others. It's a really eerie and powerful book. The actual writing wasn't my favorite, but the story itself I could see being life-changing for some. 
 I appreciated the juxtaposition between Hannah's tapes and Clay's reaction to listening to them. Clay represents me (and probably a lot of other people in the world) - I recognize that suicide is a real issue, and a preventable issue, but it's a scary and awkward thing to confront and a really hard thing to understand. I appreciated that one of the "points" of Thirteen Reasons Why is to encourage people to talk about suicide, because talking and sharing can lead to a greater awareness. Hannah pushes away Clay, and likely others, that would have been willing to listen and help due to her own insecurities and doubts, while Clay doesn't keep reaching out to Hannah because of his own nervousness and fears. Suicide is often seen as a taboo subject, and this book puts it front and center, right where it needs to be if we want to prevent it.