Book Review: UNWIND

Author: Neal Shusterman
Number of Pages: 335
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
Release Date: November 6, 2007

"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."
                                                   - Goodreads.com

This book was recommended to me by a fellow book-lover, so I knew that it would be pretty good even before I started reading it. And I have to say that it was quite a good book, however it left me with some mixed feelings.

First, let's start with the positives. I really liked the dystopian future that Neal Shusterman set up in this novel. The idea of unwinding is so utterly unique that you can't help but be pulled in. The thing is, I can sort of see something like this happening in the far away, but maybe not-so-far-away future. I mean, if you live in the USA then you have probably seen all of the presidential campaigns adds on TV. One the of the important topics being considered and debated about is abortion, and when life actually begins. Unwind dives into those sorts of topics and issues and really gets to the core of them. This novel really makes you think about your morals and what you as a person believe in. However, it does it in a way that isn't preachy, which I liked.

Even though I really liked this book, it just didn't WOW me. Something was missing from it.... I just couldn't get fully into the story. The character development was there as well as the constant suspense and action, but I kept feeling like something was missing.

Overall, this was a really good book. I'll definitely be reading the sequel soon!

My Rating: :0) :0) :0) :0) 4 out of 5 smileys

Would I recommend it to a friend?: Absolutely!

Yours,
NutFreeNerd