Okay, I'm a wuss. I admit it. But truth is, I only got thirty pages into this book before I chickend out. I don't think I'm old or mature enough yet to read about stripping kids of their body parts to be sold on the donor market. However, my squeamishness didn't stop my seventeen-year-old daughter Erin. She dived into Unwind, came up for the odd breath - and to bombard me with questions - before diving back in. Her recurring question was: "Mom, would you ever send me away to be unwound?" My answer: "That all depends on whether you've cleaned your room or not." I thought it would rouse her to action, but it turned out to be an epic fail. She'd rather risk having her body parts sold off to the highest bidder than tackle that mess . . . Oh, well. What can I say? So the following review was written by my guest blogger Erin.
Unwind will leave you haunted, exhilarated, terrified, shocked, amazed and unable to think about anything else for about two weeks.
This is the horrifying and brilliant story of our world gone mad. After a war over abortion, both sides reached the conclusion that parents could sign an order for their children between the ages of 13 and 18 to be unwound. These children are taken to “Harvest Camps” where their body parts will be harvested for later use.
Three teenagers are on the run, trying to save themselves. If they can survive without being caught until they’re eighteen then they cannot be unwound. They can be imprisoned, but not unwound. Connor is your average teenage boy who messes up. In a moment of anger, his parents sign him away. Once signed, it cannot be undone. Risa is an orphan who lives in a state home. After she makes a mistake during a piano concert, the State signs her unwind order. And finally, Lev is a tithe child, brainwashed his entire life to believe that he has been especially chosen for a great mission - to save lives by being unwound.
Often, in the book, the teens are comforted by the line “you don’t die, you just stop living.” My questions is: So, if all your body parts are alive and functioning, but in different places, are you alive or dead? If your brain still works, and your memories still exist, but they belong to someone else, then have you really died if your body is not dead? I don't have the answer and I would be afraid to hear it anyway. This is one of the things that disturbed me most of all. Trust me, you will never get over this book. I gave it five gruesome stars.
Thanks Erin. And I promise, I would never send you to be unwound no matter the state of your room.
So from Gwynn, you wuss blogger, cheers! Enjoy the week
