Mini review: Unwind

Unwind by Neal Shusterman

From Goodreads

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.

★★★★

Okay everyone, I’ve finally done it. This book was on my TBR for so long and I’ve finally read it. And, I can confidently say it was worth it. This book is as good as everyone says.

This is a YA dystopian, which I haven’t read in a while. It was really well-written. The characters were interesting and distinct. They all had different motivations and outlooks on life, and it was super interesting. I loved all their different perspectives. The action and plot were great, too. They moved along at a good pace.

I also think the world-building was great. The history of unwinding and how America ended up there is explained without it being tedious. The concept is also so morbid, so unique, and so interesting. I liked seeing the different takes on unwinding. Connor, Risa, and Lev all come from different backgrounds and have different perspectives on unwinding, and they meet so many people with different perspectives. It was interesting to see this concept explored at large, and to see what it was like in society and some of the unintended consequences of it.

Also, I loved the setting. We know me, I’m a slut for a good setting. But the airplane graveyard was so cool. And all the other settings throughout the book were fantastic. 10/10 for setting alone.

Overall, I don’t have much to say about this book other than: if you’re not sure whether you should read it, I say you should. It’s as good as people say.

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Also as a bit of a tangent lmao: a while ago, I read a review for this book where the reviewer was like “I wonder if this is a metaphor for abortion” and like, sis, they literally say that several times. That’s what the civil war was fought about. How did you miss that.

So there’s my long-time-coming review of Unwind! I’m so happy I finally read this book. Have you read it? What were your thoughts? Let me know!

Ally xx