13 REASONS WHY

The novel begins as our narrator, Clay Jensen, mails a mysterious package to someone named Jenny. We soon learn that the package contains the audiotaped suicide note of Hannah Baker, a girl Clay had a crush on before she killed herself about two weeks ago. This is going to be a doozy, Shmoopers.

In the package, there are a total of seven cassette tapes and thirteen stories. On the first tape, Hannah tells her listeners that she holds each of them responsible in some way for her death, and that the tapes will explain why. After listening, each person must give the tapes to the next person on the list. She says that if anybody fails to pass them along, a copy of the recordings will be made public. The tapes also come with a map that listeners are meant to physically follow as they listen to her story.

The narrative moves back and forth between Hannah's and Clay's thoughts and actions. This is hard to portray in a short summary, so remember that Clay's thoughts are always mixed in with Hannah's stories. (Basically, go read it: it's a really interesting, challenging, and pretty brilliant structure.)

The thirteen stories (i.e., the "reasons why") are as follows: (1) Justin Foley, Hannah's first kiss, started rumors that they did more than just kiss. (2) Alex Standall pitted Hannah and Jessica Davis against each other by voting Hannah "Best Ass of the Freshman Class." (3) Jessica Davis was upset by this and ended up hitting Hannah, leaving a scar on her forehead. (4) Tyler Down allegedly took pictures of Hannah through her window (she calls him a Peeping Tom). (5) Courtney Crimson, a super fake girl at school, started rumors that Hannah had sex toys in her bedroom.

As he's listening to Courtney's tape, Clay gets on the city bus and runs into his middle school crush, Skye Miller. He starts to wonder why Skye always isolates herself from everybody. They exchange a few words and then Clay gets off the bus, outside of Tyler Down's house. There, he runs into Marcus Cooley, who invites Clay to throw a rock at Tyler's window (which is already broken). He learns that Marcus is also on the tapes, so he must be guilty of something, too.

Back to the tapes: (6) After getting matched up with Hannah through a Valentine's Day survey, Marcus tried to make a move on her in a booth at Rosie's Diner. She had to push him out of the booth and onto the floor to get him to stop.

Still listening, Clay heads toward Rosie's (next stop on the map); on his way he sees the Crestmont Theater, where he and Hannah worked the previous summer. He got the job to be close to her, but he always let the rumors about her stand in the way of telling her how he felt.

More recordings: (7) When Hannah ignored Zach Dempsey's attempts to comfort her after the incident with Marcus, Zach stole the notes of encouragement left for Hannah by classmates in her Peer Communications class. (8) Hannah met Ryan Shaver in a poetry class and really trusted him; that is, until he stole a very personal poem of Hannah's and published it, leading to more ridicule for Hannah.

Clay leaves Rosie's and finds his friend Tony waiting for him in the parking lot. Tony tells him that he is the one who has the second set of tapes, the ones that will be released to the public if Clay's tapes aren't passed on according to Hannah's wishes. Clay is full of questions, but Tony refuses to answer anything until Clay listens to the next recording.

So, the tapes: (9) The ninth tape features Clay and assures him that he had nothing to do with Hannah's suicide. He was actually really good to Hannah; he even confessed his feelings to her and they kissed! (10) Justin Foley, from the first tape, is back on the recordings. This time, Justin allowed Bryce Walker to rape Jessica while she was unconscious.

At this point, Tony explains that on the day of Hannah's death, he found the tapes waiting for him when he got home from school. When he realized what Hannah was up to, he called her parents to try to warn them, but he was too late. Since then, he's been following the people on the list making sure they follow Hannah's instructions.

One last dive into the tapes: (11) After a party, Jenny Kurtz offered Hannah a ride home, but knocked down a stop sign with her car. Jenny refused to report the incident, and shortly after, there was a fatal accident at the stop sign. (12) One night, Bryce Walker started to touch Hannah in a hot tub, and he proceeded to rape her. (13) Mr. Porter, Hannah's guidance counselor, didn't take her seriously when she said she was suicidal, and he let her leave his office without getting her any help.

The novel ends with Clay going to school the next day after mailing the tapes to Jenny. When he gets there, he sees Skye Miller, the girl from the bus. He walks toward her, saying her name.

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THE THREE IDIOTS

Farhan Qureshi (R. Madhavan), Raju Rastogi (Sharman Joshi), and Rancchoddas "Rancho" Shyamaldas Chanchad (Aamir Khan) are three engineering students who share a room in a hostel at the Imperial College of Engineering, one of the best colleges in India. While Farhan and Raju are average students from modest backgrounds, Rancho is from a rich family. Farhan wants to become a wildlife photographer, but has joined engineering college to fulfil his father's wish. Raju on the other hand wants to uplift his family fortunes. Rancho is a wealthy genius who studies for the sheer joy of it. However, Rancho's passion is for knowledge and taking apart and building machines rather than the conventional obsession of the other students with exam ranks. With his different approach Rancho incurs the wrath of dean of college, Professor Viru Sahastrabudhhe (ViruS) (Boman Irani). Rancho irritates his lecturers by giving creative and unorthodox answers, and confronts ViruS after fellow student Joy Lobo hangs himself in his dormitory room. Joy had requested an extension on his major project on compassionate groundshis father had suffered a strokebut ViruS refused, saying that he himself was completely unmoved by his own son's accidental death after being hit by a train. Rancho denounces the rat race, dog-eat-dog, mindless rote learning mentality of the institution, blaming it for Lobo's death.

Rancho is the rebel among them always questioning things and believing that learning is more than just the usual mode of education.

He encourages his friends to look beyond the ordinary and soon earns the wrath of the college director Viru Sahasrabuddhe (Boman Irani).

Despite his fun and frolic, Rancho always surprises everyone by topping the class. He even manages to win the affections of the director's daughter Pia (Kareena Kapoor). But Rancho's greatest contribution lies is making his friends realise their true calling.
This isn't a bad film, though. By which I mean it conjures up a few moments, it will doubtless make some people cry, and every now and then we glimpse some heart. Yet it hurts to see that this is traditional Bollywood masala schlock, with scenes calculated to tickle and to evoke sympathy. It's not awful at all, but since when did 'not bad' become good? Dr Feelgood doesn't make the cut this time, and we need to measure him by the high bar his previous excellence has set -- by which degree this is a whopper of a disappointment.

The twist comes when on Graduation Day. After being awarded the Student Of The Year title, Rancho mysteriously disappears into oblivion.

Years later, Farhan and Raju, finding a common thread, embark on a journey to find their friend. 3 Idiots is a story of friendship, hope, aspirations and most importantly, the goodness of life.

With 3 Idiots, Rajkumar Hirani proves beyond doubt that there's no better storyteller than him in the present generation.

Like the peppy Aal Izz Well song drawing towards a tragic climax it's so cleverly done that it has the desired effect. There are scenes that'll make you laugh, they'll make you cry and they'll make you think.

Hirani does it all so beautifully that you want to go back to college and relive all those moments.

The falling in love, the harassment by professors, the secret drinking sessions, the ragging of fellow students it's all there.

Hirani also sends across a message on student pressures but there's no preaching here it's all done in his inimitable style.

Most films have their own set of 'highlight' scenes.

3 Idiots is different because every scene is special and brings with it something that's out of the ordinary.
But there are a few that have a far lasting impact the entire ragging sequence; the camaraderie between Rancho and Pia; Chatur's (the 'brainy' student) hilarious speech; the entire black-and-white depiction of Raju's family; most of the scenes between Rancho and Viru; the sequences that lead to Raju's recovery in the hospital and many more. After a point, you just stop counting.
Dialogues are snappy and totally effective ("In India, you get a pizza in 30 minutes guaranteed but not an ambulance"). The soundtrack, background score and cinematography is top class.

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ROMEO AND JULIET

In the streets of Verona another brawl breaks out between the servants of the feuding noble families of Capulet and Montague. Benvolio, a Montague, tries to stop the fighting, but is himself embroiled when the rash Capulet, Tybalt, arrives on the scene. After citizens outraged by the constant violence beat back the warring factions, Prince Escalus, the ruler of Verona, attempts to prevent any further conflicts between the families by decreeing death for any individual who disturbs the peace in the future.

Romeo, the son of Montague, runs into his cousin Benvolio, who had earlier seen Romeo moping in a grove of sycamores. After some prodding by Benvolio, Romeo confides that he is in love with Rosaline, a woman who does not return his affections. Benvolio counsels him to forget this woman and find another, more beautiful one, but Romeo remains despondent.

Meanwhile, Paris, a kinsman of the Prince, seeks Juliet’s hand in marriage. Her father Capulet, though happy at the match, asks Paris to wait two years, since Juliet is not yet even fourteen. Capulet dispatches a servant with a list of people to invite to a masquerade and feast he traditionally holds. He invites Paris to the feast, hoping that Paris will begin to win Juliet’s heart.

Romeo and Benvolio, still discussing Rosaline, encounter the Capulet servant bearing the list of invitations. Benvolio suggests that they attend, since that will allow Romeo to compare his beloved to other beautiful women of Verona. Romeo agrees to go with Benvolio to the feast, but only because Rosaline, whose name he reads on the list, will be there.

In Capulet’s household, young Juliet talks with her mother, Lady Capulet, and her nurse about the possibility of marrying Paris. Juliet has not yet considered marriage, but agrees to look at Paris during the feast to see if she thinks she could fall in love with him.

The feast begins. A melancholy Romeo follows Benvolio and their witty friend Mercutio to Capulet’s house. Once inside, Romeo sees Juliet from a distance and instantly falls in love with her; he forgets about Rosaline completely. As Romeo watches Juliet, entranced, a young Capulet, Tybalt, recognizes him, and is enraged that a Montague would sneak into a Capulet feast. He prepares to attack, but Capulet holds him back. Soon, Romeo speaks to Juliet, and the two experience a profound attraction. They kiss, not even knowing each other’s names. When he finds out from Juliet’s nurse that she is the daughter of Capulet—his family’s enemy—he becomes distraught. When Juliet learns that the young man she has just kissed is the son of Montague, she grows equally upset.

As Mercutio and Benvolio leave the Capulet estate, Romeo leaps over the orchard wall into the garden, unable to leave Juliet behind. From his hiding place, he sees Juliet in a window above the orchard and hears her speak his name. He calls out to her, and they exchange vows of love.

Romeo hurries to see his friend and confessor Friar Lawrence, who, though shocked at the sudden turn of Romeo’s heart, agrees to marry the young lovers in secret since he sees in their love the possibility of ending the age-old feud between Capulet and Montague. The following day, Romeo and Juliet meet at Friar Lawrence’s cell and are married. The Nurse, who is privy to the secret, procures a ladder, which Romeo will use to climb into Juliet’s window for their wedding night.

The next day, Benvolio and Mercutio encounter Tybalt—Juliet’s cousin—who, still enraged that Romeo attended Capulet’s feast, has challenged Romeo to a duel. Romeo appears. Now Tybalt’s kinsman by marriage, Romeo begs the Capulet to hold off the duel until he understands why Romeo does not want to fight. Disgusted with this plea for peace, Mercutio says that he will fight Tybalt himself. The two begin to duel. Romeo tries to stop them by leaping between the combatants. Tybalt stabs Mercutio under Romeo’s arm, and Mercutio dies. Romeo, in a rage, kills Tybalt. Romeo flees from the scene. Soon after, the Prince declares him forever banished from Verona for his crime. Friar Lawrence arranges for Romeo to spend his wedding night with Juliet before he has to leave for Mantua the following morning.

In her room, Juliet awaits the arrival of her new husband. The Nurse enters, and, after some confusion, tells Juliet that Romeo has killed Tybalt. Distraught, Juliet suddenly finds herself married to a man who has killed her kinsman. But she resettles herself, and realizes that her duty belongs with her love: to Romeo.

Romeo sneaks into Juliet’s room that night, and at last they consummate their marriage and their love. Morning comes, and the lovers bid farewell, unsure when they will see each other again. Juliet learns that her father, affected by the recent events, now intends for her to marry Paris in just three days. Unsure of how to proceed—unable to reveal to her parents that she is married to Romeo, but unwilling to marry Paris now that she is Romeo’s wife—Juliet asks her nurse for advice. She counsels Juliet to proceed as if Romeo were dead and to marry Paris, who is a better match anyway. Disgusted with the Nurse’s disloyalty, Juliet disregards her advice and hurries to Friar Lawrence. He concocts a plan to reunite Juliet with Romeo in Mantua. The night before her wedding to Paris, Juliet must drink a potion that will make her appear to be dead. After she is laid to rest in the family’s crypt, the Friar and Romeo will secretly retrieve her, and she will be free to live with Romeo, away from their parents’ feuding.

Juliet returns home to discover the wedding has been moved ahead one day, and she is to be married tomorrow. That night, Juliet drinks the potion, and the Nurse discovers her, apparently dead, the next morning. The Capulets grieve, and Juliet is entombed according to plan. But Friar Lawrence’s message explaining the plan to Romeo never reaches Mantua. Its bearer, Friar John, gets confined to a quarantined house. Romeo hears only that Juliet is dead.

Romeo learns only of Juliet’s death and decides to kill himself rather than live without her. He buys a vial of poison from a reluctant Apothecary, then speeds back to Verona to take his own life at Juliet’s tomb. Outside the Capulet crypt, Romeo comes upon Paris, who is scattering flowers on Juliet’s grave. They fight, and Romeo kills Paris. He enters the tomb, sees Juliet’s inanimate body, drinks the poison, and dies by her side. Just then, Friar Lawrence enters and realizes that Romeo has killed Paris and himself. At the same time, Juliet awakes. Friar Lawrence hears the coming of the watch. When Juliet refuses to leave with him, he flees alone. Juliet sees her beloved Romeo and realizes he has killed himself with poison. She kisses his poisoned lips, and when that does not kill her, buries his dagger in her chest, falling dead upon his body.

The watch arrives, followed closely by the Prince, the Capulets, and Montague. Montague declares that Lady Montague has died of grief over Romeo’s exile. Seeing their children’s bodies, Capulet and Montague agree to end their long-standing feud and to raise gold statues of their children side-by-side in a newly peaceful Verona.

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My School Crush

Crushes are a wonderful thing. Everyone responds to them in the same way with this childlike sense of excitement and wonder. You can be and still feel a smile develop when you’re listening to “I Wanna Hold Your Hand” because you get it and it gets you. I don’t know you that well, which is kind of great because it allows me to run wild with my imagination. Maybe you’re the kind of person who likes to nibble on earlobes or cut the crust off their sandwiches or maybe you’re actually a raging jerk who’s selfish in bed. I really have no idea. I like not knowing. It lets me create a pretty picture of you and I having picnics, kissing under streetlights, getting tangled in bed on a Sunday afternoon, getting stoned and listening to records when it’s raining, and going grocery shopping for juice and sundried tomato spread. All of these things are possible in my head. You could be this person. So I don’t think I’m going to do anything about it. I think I’m just going to let it be. I’m going to keep you as my dream person and not have reality ruin anything. Don’t think of this as a sad thing. You’ll be the crush who will never be able to crush me. 

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