Unwind (1) (Unwind Dystology)
Three teens fight for their lives and each other in this breathtakingly suspenseful first book in the twisted, New York Times bestselling Unwind Dystology series by Neal Shusterman.
After America’s Second Civil War, the Pro-Choice and Pro-Life armies came to an agreement. According to their Bill of Life, human life may not be terminated from the moment of conception until the age of thirteen. But between the ages of thirteen and eighteen, the child may be gotten rid of by their parent through a process called “unwinding.”
By repurposing a teen’s organs and other body parts in living recipients, the unwound child’s life doesn’t technically end. According to society’s leaders, unwinding leads to a healthier and safer community, as troublesome and unwanted teens are used for the greater good.
Conner is a rebel whose unwinding was ordered by his parents. Rita, a ward of the state, has been slated for unwinding due to cost cutting. And Lev, his parents’ tenth child, has been destined for unwinding since birth as a religious tithe. As their paths intersect, they start to fight for their own destinies. But do they stand a chance of escaping their fate or proving their lives are worth saving?
After America’s Second Civil War, the Pro-Choice and Pro-Life armies came to an agreement. According to their Bill of Life, human life may not be terminated from the moment of conception until the age of thirteen. But between the ages of thirteen and eighteen, the child may be gotten rid of by their parent through a process called “unwinding.”
By repurposing a teen’s organs and other body parts in living recipients, the unwound child’s life doesn’t technically end. According to society’s leaders, unwinding leads to a healthier and safer community, as troublesome and unwanted teens are used for the greater good.
Conner is a rebel whose unwinding was ordered by his parents. Rita, a ward of the state, has been slated for unwinding due to cost cutting. And Lev, his parents’ tenth child, has been destined for unwinding since birth as a religious tithe. As their paths intersect, they start to fight for their own destinies. But do they stand a chance of escaping their fate or proving their lives are worth saving?
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Community Reviews
So, this book is filled with AWESOME.
One day, while browsing the local bookstore with the boyfriend, I got caught up chatting with a teenaged reader about the stack of books she was holding. We talked about the merits of some of the books she held and then went on to exchange recommendations of books to read. This one was her recommendation to me, and I bought it based on her verbal praise of it alone.
I WISH I COULD THANK THAT GIRL.
This book is... stunning. It's beautiful and tragic and terrifying all at the same time. It raised so many questions for me about what I believe now and what I believed "then" when I was the age of the protagonists in this book. It made me question what we teach our children. It made me wonder about the things we accept as normative in our world. It made me afraid of what the world might look like someday. I think this novel made me consider issues I've been so sure of in a new light and the consequences that can come from both action and inaction.
Welcome to a future America where a civil war between the pro-lifers and the pro-choicers resulted in a horrific "Bill of Life." This set of constitutional amendments declares that human life cannot be touched/harmed between conception until age 13. However, between the ages of 13-18, parents may choose to have their children "retroactively aborted" with the one condition being that life does not "end" but is instead allowed to continue in a divided state. Meaning: these children's bodies are harvested for their organs and parts which are then sold off to whoever can afford to purchase them.
It's almost like plastic surgery to the max, except it's not treated as cosmetic changes but "transplants." In this world, doctors do not focus so much on healing a person, but simply replace the damaged part. Like we're cars, or machinery, or robots. I imagine these people look really strange, awkwardly stitched up and sewn together with fragmented parts that once belonged to other people.
The book is centered on the stories of three young people all scheduled to be unwound. Their paths to this end are incredibly different--Connor is signed away by his parents, Risa is a burden on the state and no longer worth financially supporting, and Lev is a human offerring set aside by his religious parents to be "special" and "chosen" for this distinctive honor. Their paths cross, intertwine, and layer over one another in sometimes very surprising ways.
There were twists in this book I didn't see coming, which I really appreciated. And the powerful story Shusterman weaves gets ahold of your heart and doesn't really let go. He squeezes it instead, makes you ache for these kids and what these adults have OK'd! And even if they are rebellious, hard to control children--do they deserve to be undone like this?
While reading this book, I thought back on historical accounts of Anne Frank hiding from the Nazis, I remembered the secret underground railroad that helped guide slaves to freedom. This book is so intricately woven and so craftily plotted, I was hard pressed to find things I didn't like about it. In fact, perhaps the one criticism I have is--How did Lev end up in the Graveyard? I'd like to know! Nevermind that you've told me it's not important; I still want to know. :) [edit: apparently this is actually it's own short story called UNSTRUNG! Um, SCORE!!!!]
It's easy to like the characters he's created, even Lev who clearly has a personality that is in need of direction and purpose. He needed his religion and he trades that set of beliefs for another, but nevertheless he's still a young boy who will need to blaze his own trail sooner or later. Connor is strong, and his growth across the novel is believable. He's a great lead, and I like the slow-developing and lightly-touched romance that blooms between him and Risa, a street smart chick that I would love to be friends with.
I can't wait to read the next book...
One day, while browsing the local bookstore with the boyfriend, I got caught up chatting with a teenaged reader about the stack of books she was holding. We talked about the merits of some of the books she held and then went on to exchange recommendations of books to read. This one was her recommendation to me, and I bought it based on her verbal praise of it alone.
I WISH I COULD THANK THAT GIRL.
This book is... stunning. It's beautiful and tragic and terrifying all at the same time. It raised so many questions for me about what I believe now and what I believed "then" when I was the age of the protagonists in this book. It made me question what we teach our children. It made me wonder about the things we accept as normative in our world. It made me afraid of what the world might look like someday. I think this novel made me consider issues I've been so sure of in a new light and the consequences that can come from both action and inaction.
Welcome to a future America where a civil war between the pro-lifers and the pro-choicers resulted in a horrific "Bill of Life." This set of constitutional amendments declares that human life cannot be touched/harmed between conception until age 13. However, between the ages of 13-18, parents may choose to have their children "retroactively aborted" with the one condition being that life does not "end" but is instead allowed to continue in a divided state. Meaning: these children's bodies are harvested for their organs and parts which are then sold off to whoever can afford to purchase them.
It's almost like plastic surgery to the max, except it's not treated as cosmetic changes but "transplants." In this world, doctors do not focus so much on healing a person, but simply replace the damaged part. Like we're cars, or machinery, or robots. I imagine these people look really strange, awkwardly stitched up and sewn together with fragmented parts that once belonged to other people.
The book is centered on the stories of three young people all scheduled to be unwound. Their paths to this end are incredibly different--Connor is signed away by his parents, Risa is a burden on the state and no longer worth financially supporting, and Lev is a human offerring set aside by his religious parents to be "special" and "chosen" for this distinctive honor. Their paths cross, intertwine, and layer over one another in sometimes very surprising ways.
There were twists in this book I didn't see coming, which I really appreciated. And the powerful story Shusterman weaves gets ahold of your heart and doesn't really let go. He squeezes it instead, makes you ache for these kids and what these adults have OK'd! And even if they are rebellious, hard to control children--do they deserve to be undone like this?
While reading this book, I thought back on historical accounts of Anne Frank hiding from the Nazis, I remembered the secret underground railroad that helped guide slaves to freedom. This book is so intricately woven and so craftily plotted, I was hard pressed to find things I didn't like about it. In fact, perhaps the one criticism I have is--How did Lev end up in the Graveyard? I'd like to know! Nevermind that you've told me it's not important; I still want to know. :) [edit: apparently this is actually it's own short story called UNSTRUNG! Um, SCORE!!!!]
It's easy to like the characters he's created, even Lev who clearly has a personality that is in need of direction and purpose. He needed his religion and he trades that set of beliefs for another, but nevertheless he's still a young boy who will need to blaze his own trail sooner or later. Connor is strong, and his growth across the novel is believable. He's a great lead, and I like the slow-developing and lightly-touched romance that blooms between him and Risa, a street smart chick that I would love to be friends with.
I can't wait to read the next book...
"Unwind" by Neal Shusterman is a gripping young adult novel that immerses readers in a thought-provoking dystopian world. The story is set in a future where society has developed a controversial practice involving the "unwinding" of teenagers, raising profound ethical questions about life, identity, and the value of human beings. Shusterman masterfully crafts a narrative that keeps you on edge, as you become invested in the characters' plight and the moral dilemmas they face.
The pacing is relentless, and the tension builds throughout the story, making it hard to put down. Each character is developed thoughtfully, providing different perspectives on the issues at hand. As readers navigate this chilling future, they'll find themselves grappling with their own beliefs about technology, autonomy, and what it means to be truly alive.
Overall, "Unwind" is a must-read for fans of speculative fiction. It challenges your moral compass while keeping your heart racing with its suspenseful plot. It's a novel that lingers in your mind long after turning the final page, making you question the direction technology and society are headed. If you're looking for a thought-provoking and thrilling read, this book should be at the top of your list.
4.5, really. This book was disturbing and thought-provoking. But that was why I wanted to pick it up. I read Scythe and Thunderhead and both of those books asked interesting moral questions: what if we were responsible for each others' deaths; would life have purpose if we couldn't die; does life have purpose if an AI controls everything. This book also gave me a lot of pause. I know I'll be thinking about this book for a while to come.
The premise is that there was a major war fought between the pro-life and pro-choice camps and this is the resolution they came to: every viable pregnancy must be carried to completion, but that doesn't mean that a kid necessarily makes it to adulthood. Their parents have the choice to have them "unwound" before they turn 18, where they are technically alive because every part of them is in use, but every part of them is divided up and given to strangers. There are so many moral quandaries inherent in this concept. Are you alive if you aren't together? Are you dead? There's a concept in this book called "storking," where new moms will drop their infants on someone's doorstep. Those people whose doorstep it is are now obligated to adopt that child when they find it. There's a horrifying story of a child being passed around a neighborhood, each family dropping it off on another's doorstep pretending they hadn't been storked, until the baby was too sick and died. And that actually ended up being one of the less disturbing stories. spoilerBy far, the most disturbing scene was when Roland was being unwound. I had to stop several times while reading. It was horrible to read and I don't think I will ever forget that scene. It was heart-wrenching and gut-wrenching all at the same time. And honestly, I think this book made me more pro-life than before. All of these people who were being unwound had lived lives; so many of them ghosted into the lives of the people they got grafted onto, like the ending scene with Harlan Dunfee. To me, it seems monstrously more unfair to rip apart humans who have lived long enough to understand the impact of what's happening to them. I found it horrifying.
Anyhow. This book made an indelible mark on me. I see there's another one. I don't know that I need to read it. This book could be styled as a stand-alone, and I'm interested more in what happens to the characters in the Scythe series. But it made an indelible mark on me and I will be actively thinking about this book for a long time.
The premise is that there was a major war fought between the pro-life and pro-choice camps and this is the resolution they came to: every viable pregnancy must be carried to completion, but that doesn't mean that a kid necessarily makes it to adulthood. Their parents have the choice to have them "unwound" before they turn 18, where they are technically alive because every part of them is in use, but every part of them is divided up and given to strangers. There are so many moral quandaries inherent in this concept. Are you alive if you aren't together? Are you dead? There's a concept in this book called "storking," where new moms will drop their infants on someone's doorstep. Those people whose doorstep it is are now obligated to adopt that child when they find it. There's a horrifying story of a child being passed around a neighborhood, each family dropping it off on another's doorstep pretending they hadn't been storked, until the baby was too sick and died. And that actually ended up being one of the less disturbing stories. spoilerBy far, the most disturbing scene was when Roland was being unwound. I had to stop several times while reading. It was horrible to read and I don't think I will ever forget that scene. It was heart-wrenching and gut-wrenching all at the same time. And honestly, I think this book made me more pro-life than before. All of these people who were being unwound had lived lives; so many of them ghosted into the lives of the people they got grafted onto, like the ending scene with Harlan Dunfee. To me, it seems monstrously more unfair to rip apart humans who have lived long enough to understand the impact of what's happening to them. I found it horrifying.
Anyhow. This book made an indelible mark on me. I see there's another one. I don't know that I need to read it. This book could be styled as a stand-alone, and I'm interested more in what happens to the characters in the Scythe series. But it made an indelible mark on me and I will be actively thinking about this book for a long time.
this was my first introduction to dystopia, and i think i'm going to get a lot more of these kinds of books. the characters didn't feel copy-pasted personality wise, the plot is great, and the most unexpected things come up. there are a few disturbing things in this novel, such as a minor sa mention, but if you're comfortable, this is a book that is always going to stay with you.
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