i was very pleasantly surprised with this. i tend to be wary about book adaptations, but this is one of the rare exceptions where i'll say that, in my opinion, the adaptation has an edge over the book. yes, there **are** changes from the book, as with all book-to-film or book-to-tv adaptations, but i believe that, in this case, almost every change benefited the story. the characters are what really stand out in this. as i recall from the book, some of the characters felt a bit one dimensional to me, or were at least looked at in a more or less black/white light, mainly due to understandable time constraints within the novel. a thirteen episode series really lets them shine. the characters are more developed and viewable in a more morally grey light, which really makes you feel for (most) of them. and i personally feel these characters are what make "13 reasons why" stand out from the typical teen drama. netflix continues to be one of the (if not THE) best platforms for entertainment out there.