Unwind (Unwind, #1)

When I was a child, my mother took me to a pediatrician that had a plaque hanging on his wall that said “Kids Are People Too.” Quite a few characters in this book seem to have forgotten that - or never seemed to have realized it at all. The complete disregard that society has for these teenagers is unreal. That they can “unwind” them and justify it by saying they are not dead but simply going on living in a “divided state” is astounding. Unwinding just shows how far people are willing to go to get the parts they need, how far man will go when science has advanced too far, and how far the pro-life/pro-choice zealots can take their feud.

It took a little while, but I came to feel for these characters in the book. Connor and Risa, I wanted nothing more than for the two of them to escape to their freedom. Lev, there's a love/hate relationship with that kid all through the book. He just came across to me as being so conflicted. Roland, I just loathed, but wouldn't you know that HE is the one the author chooses for unwinding? Reading through the unwinding process, knowing it was happening to Roland, a character that I despised, I still found myself feeling terribly sorry for him. It was not a pleasant thing to read.

All in all, this book was amazing. Shusterman definitely knows how to write a page turner. Even though I purchased this book out of the Young Adult section, I have to say, this is definitely a book for ALL ages. It's been a little while since I've enjoyed a book this much. I'd give it more stars if I could.