Discussion Strategies

Point of View- Throughout this book the point of view is in the first person, but the writer changes things up a little by adding the paragraphs where Hannah is speaking through the tapes. This is an interesting technique that adds a lot to the book. If Clay were simply re-telling the stories that Hannah had recorded the book would be much more one-dimensional. A lot of the times with a first person point of view your knowledge of what is happening in the book is limited to what the character knows, but with this style not only do you get to know what Clay knows and is thinking but you also get to see from Hannah's perspective. Albeit her perspective is limited because we are only hearing prerecorded tapes, I think it is still better than nothing.

Suspense- This book is filled with suspense. Each story Hannah tells holds a secret that the reader wants to find out. She shares the secret in the form of retelling a story, and sometimes she holds back some pertinent information until the end. While there are many points of suspense throughout the book, there is a constant bridging suspense around Clay and his tape. Clay seems to have no idea why he would be on a tape at all, and Hannah waits until the end to let him figure it out. The reader has the ability to get wrapped up in the mini moments of suspense that occur throughout the book, they can also fall back on the greater question of Clay's role in her suicide when things begin to calm.