13 Reasons Why Comprehension Questions
Opening Pages
1. What is the narrator doing at the start of the novel?
2. Who is the narrator sending the package to?
3. At the start of the novel, what is the main character’s mood?
4. Who will be the last person to receive to package?
Yesterday: One Hour after School
5. What is the narrator’s name?
6. What does he receive in the mail?
Cassette 1: Side A
7. Who recorded the tapes? What happened to her?
8. What are the rules she gives the listeners?
9. What will happen if the listeners do not follow the rules?
10. How did Clay know Hannah?
11.Who was the first person to receive the tapes? How did Hannah meet him?
12. What is the purpose of the maps Hannah distributed?
13. Where did Clay first see Hannah?
14. Where did Hannah meet Justin? What happened there? What did Justin say happened?
15. How long did Hannah and Justin date? Why did it end?
16. Why does Clay go to see Tony? What does Clay suspect of Tony?
17. When did Hannah move to Clay’s district? What was she hoping when she moved there?
Cassette 1: Side B
18. Who is the second person to receive the tapes? Why?
19. Why does Hannah think he chose to put her name on the list?
20. Hannah says this tape is about what?
21. When Clay arrives at Hannah’s old house what event does he recall?
22. Where is the second place Hannah sends her listeners? Why?
23. What theme or message can you get from the first cassette?
Cassette 2: Side A
24. What did Ms. Antilly do for Jessica and Hannah? How do the girls feel about this? Who was she replaced by?
Why do you think she was replaced?
25. Where did Jessica and Hannah go after meeting with Ms. Antilly? Who else did they meet there?
26. How did they get to meeting this third person? Do you think he is being honest?
27. Why does Jessica get upset with Hannah?
28.Why does Hannah have a scar above her eyebrow?
29. Why didn’t Jessica go to Hannah’s funeral? Why do you think there wasn’t one?
Cassette 2: Side B
30. Who keeps eyeballing Clay at the Café? How does this person remember Clay? Do you think she knows
about the cassettes?
31. What does Clay go walking by many times before he receives the cassettes? Why?
32. What does the sign read on the front of the shoe store? What is wrong with it?
33. Why is Tyler Down’s story different form the others?
34. Why does Hannah tell her listeners to be quiet? Why is she whispering?
35. What does Hannah say about a poem?
36. What does Courtney think about having a Peeping Tom? What do you think if this?
38. After Courtney and Hannah catch the Peeping Tom, what does Hannah do the next day at school? How
does Tyler respond?
39. What does Clay find when he looks through the September book at Monet’s?
40. What is so interesting about the picture? What does this foreshadow?
Cassette 3: Side A
41. How does Hannah describe Courtney?
42. How did Courtney hurt Hannah following the slumber party?
43. When does Courtney need Hannah again?
44. How does Courtney treat Hannah at the party?
45. Who does Clay run into on the bus? How has she changed?
46. Who does Clay run into when he goes to Tyler’s house? What else does he see?
47. What does this person try to convince Clay to do?
48. What does this person say about being on the tapes? How does Clay react to this?
49. What does Hannah witness at the party? How do the other party goers react to this? In turn how does this
make Hannah feel?
50. What does Hannah have Tyler do? Why?
51. What does Tyler ask of Hannah?
52. On page 113 Clay says to Hannah that “It’s times to leave Tyler alone”? Do you agree or disagree? Explain.
Cassette 3: Side B
53. What is the “Oh My Dollar Valentine”?
54. What does Hannah say the survey forgot?
55.Why does Ms. Benson think Hannah and Courtney are good friends? How does Hannah react to this?
56. What analogy does Hannah make about her life?
57.Who gives Hannah a call? How does the cheerleader react?
59. Why does Hannah tell her listeners to wait before ordering anything at Rosie’s?
60. Where does Hannah agree to meet Marcus? What happens?
60. What did Hannah decide she would try to the next day?.
61. Why did Clay watch Hannah butter the popcorn at the movie theatre they both worked at?
62. What happened at the movie theatre with Bryce Walker?
63. Why does Hannah tell Clay “he doesn’t need to watch out for her”?
Cassette 4: Side A
64. Who brings Clay the rest of the tapes? Do you think this person suspects anything?
65. What is Hannah’s favorite class? Would you like a class like this?
66. Why do the other teachers not like Peer Communications?
67. What were the brown bags on the book rack for?
68. Who comes to see Clay at Rosie’s? What does his presence and demeanor foreshadow?
69. After the whole incident with Marcus, who tries to “comfort” Hannah? Was he really coming to her rescue?.
70. Why does Hannah cut her hair?
71. Does anyone leave nice comments in Hannah’s brown bag about her new hairdo? Why or why not?
72. When does Clay say the last time was that he saw someone dying?
73. What topic does Hannah anonymously leave in Mrs. Bradley’s bag? What does the class have to say about
this? How would you react?
74. When Mrs. Bradley gives statistics on suicide why does she say they are skewed?
Cassette 4: Side B
75. Why does Hannah love to write poetry? When did she stop?
76. Why does Clay blame himself for Hannah’s suicide? Do you think he is right?
77. What other high school student joined Hannah at the poetry classes? How did he get hold of one of Hannah’s
poems?
78. What is the correct meaning of Hannah’s poem?
79. Mr. Porter says reading this “anonymous poem” was like reading a poem by who? Is that true in this case?
Explain.
80. How did others find out that she wrote the poem? How did her classmates treat the poem? 81. Why doesn’t
the worker at Rosie’s charge Clay?
Cassette 5: Side A
82. Why does Tony wait for Clay outside of Rosie’s?
83. What does Hannah say about Clay?
84. Before going to the party, where does Hannah stop? What feeling fills her at this place? Why?
85. Hannah and Clay talk on the couch at the party. Who “sits” next to them? What is ironic about this?
86. Why does Hannah wish she would have talked to Clay sooner?
87. Why did Hannah tell Clay to stop kissing her? What happens after this?
88.Who comes in after Clay leaves? Why?
Cassette 5: Side B
89. Why didn’t Hannah leave the room when the couple came in?
90. Justin leaves then room but guards the door. Who does he let in? Why?
91. Who does Clay think this boy is?
92. What does this boy do?
93. So why do the tapes go to Justin and not the other boy?
94. Why is this one of Hannah’s “reasons”?
Cassette 6: Side A
95. What did Hannah give to Tony?.
96. Why did Hannah give the second set of tapes to Tony?
97. How did she give Tony the tapes and what did he do with them?
98 How did Tony keep track of people to make sure they listened to the tapes and sent them on?
99. Who offers to give Hannah a ride home? Is she sober?
100. What does Hannah want to do after Jenny hit the sign? Jenny? How does Jenny react to Hannah’s
insistence?.
101. Who gets in a wreck?
102. Why was the old man on the road?.
103. What is the irony in the phone call Hannah makes?
Cassette 6: Side B
104. Who does Hannah ultimately blame for her problems?
105. What suicide method does Hannah decide on despite all the rumors that said otherwise?
106.What was Hannah doing that she was next door to a party?
107. Whose house was the party at?
108. Clay recalls the last words he and Hannah said to one another. What are they?
109. Hannah decides to join the two others in the hot tub. What does Clay think about this as Hannah narrates
this tale?
108. Ultimately, what happens between Hannah and Bryce?
Cassette 7: Side A
109. Who is the last person to receive the tapes?
110. Why does Hannah include him in her “reasons”? What does he fail to realize?.
111. Is there other options he could have given her? Pretend you are Hannah’s counselor, what would you have
said to her?
112. Did Mr. Porter come after Hannah when she abruptly left? What does this show to Hannah?
Cassette 7:Side B
113. What does Hannah say on this final tape?
The Next Day After Mailing the Tapes
114. Who does Clay mail the tapes to?
115. Why does Clay talk to Skye at the end of the book?