It was a snowy Wednesday night in the middle of December when I was wandering downtown after a short guitar lesson. To avoid the cold wind, I stumbled into an old, small bookstore where most of the books they sold were used. Being an eighth grader who did not like to read, I leaned against the wall by the door waiting for my mom to pick me up. The owner of the bookstore addressed me asking if I needed any help looking for a book. I politely declined and told him I wasn’t much of a reader. The tall, big-boned old man laughed and replied, “I don’t blame you. When I was about your age, I didn’t like to read either”. I half smiled as my mom pulled up next to the curb outside the bookstore. On my way out the door, he handed me a book and said, “In
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While practicing, my curiosity struck and I thought, “Why did a stranger hand me a book for free? Why does he want me to read it? What could the book possibly be about?” That night, for the first time, I read a book that I was not forced to read for school. The first chapter of the book was truly captivating and I ended up spending every Wednesday after my guitar lessons in the bookstore reading Thirteen Reasons Why while waiting for my …show more content…
Thirteen Reasons Why is a story about Clay—a highschool boy—who received tape recordings of his crush explaining the reasons why she had ended her life. After listening to all of the tape recordings, Clay is altered from being defenseless and shy to someone who wants to reach out to those who may be struggling and stand up for what is right. This book expresses the importance of standing up for the right thing and giving help to those struggling instead of standing by and letting cruel events happen. After countless nights in the bookstore, I finally finished reading Thirteen Reasons Why and returned the book to its rightful owner. In his response, he handed me another book to read. My journey of learning valuable life lessons through reading had just begun all thanks to the friendly stranger in the
While practicing, my curiosity struck and I thought, “Why did a stranger hand me a book for free? Why does he want me to read it? What could the book possibly be about?” That night, for the first time, I read a book that I was not forced to read for school. The first chapter of the book was truly captivating and I ended up spending every Wednesday after my guitar lessons in the bookstore reading Thirteen Reasons Why while waiting for my …show more content…
Thirteen Reasons Why is a story about Clay—a highschool boy—who received tape recordings of his crush explaining the reasons why she had ended her life. After listening to all of the tape recordings, Clay is altered from being defenseless and shy to someone who wants to reach out to those who may be struggling and stand up for what is right. This book expresses the importance of standing up for the right thing and giving help to those struggling instead of standing by and letting cruel events happen. After countless nights in the bookstore, I finally finished reading Thirteen Reasons Why and returned the book to its rightful owner. In his response, he handed me another book to read. My journey of learning valuable life lessons through reading had just begun all thanks to the friendly stranger in the