Guest Blogger: Jennifer Ryan
Jennifer is an English teacher at East Rockingham High School. "I love to read YA novels."
Jennifer is an English teacher at East Rockingham High School. "I love to read YA novels."
One of my favorite YA books is Unwind by Neal Shusterman. It is dystopian fiction and the main character is a teenage boy (so it is told from a boy's point of view).
To end the Heartland Wars, the government decides to allow parents the option of "unwinding" their children, ages 13-18. Usually parents choose to unwind misbehaving children. The unwinding process has children broken down into body parts and then the body parts are "harvested" to help others. The orignial child ceases to exist. The government does not consider unwinding murder since the child remains conscious through the unwinding process and their body parts benefit others. So "technically" the person is not "really" dead.
The book centers around a teenage boy whose parents have signed the paperwork agreeing to his unwinding. Connor runs away, and he must hide from the authorities until his 18th birthday. At 18, Connor will be considered an adult and safe from unwinding. Unfortunately, it is not easy to hide. Connor meets up with two other runaways, and they face many obstacles as they try to evade the authorities.
This book is action-packed. I cared about the characters and wanted *most* of them to survive. Politically, the book was thought-provoking too. (And it made me thankful there was no unwinding option when I was a teenager…)
To end the Heartland Wars, the government decides to allow parents the option of "unwinding" their children, ages 13-18. Usually parents choose to unwind misbehaving children. The unwinding process has children broken down into body parts and then the body parts are "harvested" to help others. The orignial child ceases to exist. The government does not consider unwinding murder since the child remains conscious through the unwinding process and their body parts benefit others. So "technically" the person is not "really" dead.
The book centers around a teenage boy whose parents have signed the paperwork agreeing to his unwinding. Connor runs away, and he must hide from the authorities until his 18th birthday. At 18, Connor will be considered an adult and safe from unwinding. Unfortunately, it is not easy to hide. Connor meets up with two other runaways, and they face many obstacles as they try to evade the authorities.
This book is action-packed. I cared about the characters and wanted *most* of them to survive. Politically, the book was thought-provoking too. (And it made me thankful there was no unwinding option when I was a teenager…)
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