Baker's Dozen
The AudioBiography of Hannah Baker
by Jay Asher
— SYNOPSIS —
The rules are pretty simple. There are only two. Rule number one: you listen.
Number two: you pass it on. Hopefully, neither one will be easy for you (from
Cassette 1: Side A).
Before Hannah Baker, high school junior, swallowed a handful of pills, she
recorded her voice onto seven audiotapes. She packed them in a shoebox and
mailed them to Justin, the first boy who kissed her. Then, she returned home
to kill herself.
Two weeks later, when Clay Jensen opens the package with no return
address, he has no idea what's on the tapes. Which is kind of exciting . . . until
he presses play. Out comes the voice of Hannah Baker. She tells a seemingly
random story about the first boy she kissed and the betrayal felt when he told
his friends.
A rumor, based on a kiss, is just the beginning. Turn the tape over for
more.
Thirteen stories about thirteen people in her life—but that's not all. Before
mailing the tapes, Hannah marked thirteen city maps with red stars and
delivered them to each person mentioned on the tapes; each star corresponds
with places referenced on the tapes. As the stories unfold, Clay visits the stars
to better understand Hannah's story . . . and to better understand his role in it.