Unwind by Neal Shusterman
Published: November 6th 2007
Publisher: Simon & Schuster books
Page Count: 335
Series: Unwind Trilogy #1
Synopsis: The Second Civil War was fought over reproductive rights. The chilling resolution: Life is inviolable from the moment of conception until age thirteen. Between the ages of thirteen and eighteen, however, parents can have their child "unwound," whereby all of the child's organs are transplanted into different donors, so life doesn't technically end. Connor is too difficult for his parents to control. Risa, a ward of the state is not enough to be kept alive. And Lev is a tithe, a child conceived and raised to be unwound. Together, they may have a chance to escape and to survive.
Review: This book has now become one of my favorites because its one of those books that really makes you think. Neal Shusterman manages to make everything that happens in this book seem entirely plausible but still manages to make the reader understand that what happens to these kids is completely wrong. This book is honestly quite disturbing and left me with chills because it was so fantastic. I think one of the most disturbing things is the fact that these adults manage to convince kids like Lev that what they are doing is right, so in the beginning all Lev wants to do is be unwound.
Through the book you follow Connor, Risa and Lev's point of view so you only really know what they know about unwinding and the other atrocities in their world. This is a wonderful way to write it because it builds up suspense by using mysterious stories that they have heard about the camps where children are taken to be unwound, it can be a little confusing at times but it really keeps you reading. You do occasionally deviate from the three main characters to look at some more minor characters that you meet along the way. This really only adds to the story because you get to understand others experiences's including some adults. My only real problem with this book is because it swaps point of view so many times I found it hard to become really attached to any of the characters.
The three main characters and the friends and enemies they made along the way were all realistic and quite relatable. All the characters have his or hers own faults but you soon realize that no one no matter how much you dislike them they should never been unwound.
This book is one that I don't think I'll ever forget, it really made me think and I'm sure that I'll still be thinking about it in the future and this for me personally is what makes a really fantastic book. I honestly can't wait to read the sequel which comes out in august this year.
Recommend: If you like YA books that are really thought provoking and just a little bit dark then this is the book for you.
Rating: 4.5/5 
This is a scary alternative future, that's why I'm not keen on reading Sci-fi and dystopia, it's too real for me and the possibility of that happening isn't really that far off considering the advances science have made in the last 100 years. LOL I know I'm weird but when I get tired of ghost stories I might add this to my TBR just to get me out of my comfort zone
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Yeah they can be pretty scary I mean this is essentially organ donation but with unwilling people who are still have a lot of life left to live. Where I live (in Wales)they're trying to introduce a opt out scheme, which means your an organ donor unless you say otherwise.
DeleteYeah if you don't like those sorts of books this'll definitely push you out of your comfort zone, but its a great one to start with because its such a great book. :D
I read Unwind and I loved it! I agree with you when you say it's disturbing, at certain parts of the book my stomach would be in all sorts of knots. All the same, I still liked the book and am glad to hear that there is going to be a sequel! Great review! :D
ReplyDeleteYeah I absolutely loved it. I know I was shocked that there was a sequel coming out now because it's been so long since this one was published.
DeleteI've seen about 5 reviews for this book in the past week. Kind of an unusually high number considering it's not a new release. Is it because the sequel is coming out? I'll have to check out this book- I think all of the reviews have been basically good.
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