Unwind

Shusterman, N. (2007). Unwind. NY: Simon & Schuster.
YA Lit / Dystopian

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I LOVED this book; it is the best book I have read in a while, and I've read a lot of books lately!

There is a required suspension of disbelief with the premise of the story: parents can choose to "unwind" their children, ages 13-18, and send them to be literally disassembled and 99.44% of their body parts are redistributed to others.  So, they don't really die because their parts live on in others.

So, roll with the premise and you will be absolutely swept up in the story and not be able to put it down.  It has twists, it has turns, it has surprises -- right up to the end.  Each chapter is told from a different character's perspective, which could be a turn-off for some, but I think it was handled very well and really added to the richness of the story.  Through this technique, you get to know several characters very well, and that was a huge plus for me.

Happily, this book can stand alone and the reader will be quite satisfied; however, there is a sequel, Unwholly, if fans want to follow the next phase of the story.  It's rumored that Unwind is going to be a movie -- I think this could definitely be done and be excellent on film.

There is a poignant line in the book (actually, several), when a character is talking about conflict starting with differences of opinion, and says "But by the time it turns into a war, the issue doesn't matter anymore because now it's about one thing and one thing only: how much each side hates the other."

Definitely a book that will have you thinking about it long afterwards.