Unwind by Neal Shusterman is science fiction novel set after the second American civil war which was fought over reproductive rights. In the post war society teens who are predicted to go no where in life are unwound. Unwinding is the process of taking apart their body, organs and limbs, while keeping all of it alive, and then using the pieces to help other people who need replacements.
Connor, Risa, and lev are all unwinds. Connor’s parents tried to hide the papers from him, but when he found them he denied to run away. Risa grew up in a state home and was selected to become an unwind because there were to many kids in the home. Lev grew up knowing he was going to be unwound. He was raised in a very religious family that taught him it was an honor to do this. The three of them end up in a secret system that has the goal of protecting unwinds. Once there all seems fine until it doesn’t, and they are forced to challenge the system that made them outlaws.
Unwind won many awards including the Margaret A. Edwards Award. This award is awarded to an author for a specific body of work that will have a lasting affect on the YA genre, and deals with characters becoming aware of themselves, their world, society or relationships.
Unwind fits this award quite well, a large amount of this book is about weather these kids have a place in the world, which directly relates to what the award is for. It is also a well crafted book that makes it worth selecting over other books that could have also gotten the Margaret A. Edwards Award.
This is a wonderful book for anyone who likes to be presented with difficult moral questions in a way that allows you to think about it on your own. Shusterman is very good at laying out a problem, and then not telling you what to think, but that you should think.