Unwind
Author- Neal Shusterman
Published- November 6th, 2007
Simon and Schuster
335 pages
Obtained from PBS
Connor, Risa, and Lev are running for their lives.
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.
Quite honestly, I don't know what went wrong with me and this book, but I just didn't end up loving it like so many others have. I have so many friends that have raved about this book, which made me think that maybe my mind wasn't quite twisted enough to grasp the concept well enough.
The cover is just OK. It is kind of interesting in the fact that the man is made of a fingerprint. The man adds a creepy element to the book, but not a lot a creep, just a bit. It also seems like Neal follows the same cover design format for each book, which is good for people to recognize his work, but at the same time it does get a bit boring and repetitious.
The characters were a little above average in the interest level. They were all very similar both in thought process and situation, which I think made the group have more of a "family" feeling as compared to a group of misfit people. I really loved the alternating perspective between the characters. By getting into all three's thoughts I could really get invested in the story.
Connor was a pretty good character. He was fierce and strong and not afraid to give up, even in the most dire situations. Risa was also a pretty kick butt character, but I didn't like the times when she played the damsel in distress. It totally ruined her rough persona. And then there was Lev....he gave a very wishy washy vibe and his emotions were sooo screwed up. He was in and out of the story so much that it was very difficult to get to know him.
The part of the book I had a problem with was the Unwinding situation. It was so hard for me to wrap my brain around why someone would do that to their child. It was so unbelievable and creepy that it totally turned me off the story.
Spoiler- (highlight to read)
Oh my goodness. I thought I was about to puke when they were describing Roland being unwound. Seriously, that kind of stuff doesn't usually phase me, but ughhh I can't even imagine having to stay awake while my body was being dismantled. You have to have a seriously twisted mind to enjoy that kind of stuff.
Once I got past the fact that kids were getting killed and I couldn't do anything about it, I enjoyed the action and touch of romance. There was a lot of action, for sure. The characters were always going somewhere, or doing something. Rescue missions, bombs, and killings all went on while reading this book. But still, in the back of my mind there was always the factor that kids were being unwound.
Overall, I enjoyed the book, but I had a really rough time with the unwinding and that ultimately compromised my enjoyment of the book. If you like horror novels, you may enjoy this book more than I did. Nonetheless, I am still going to continue the series because I am curious how the story will progress.
Unwind will be getting three hearts-
