Review Detail

Reader reviewed by mearley

One of the best YA books I've read this year!

In a future society, following a war between the pro-life and pro-choice factions, a compromise is reached: Life is sacred from the moment of conception to age 13; between age 13 and 18, parents may choose to "unwind" the child. "Unwinding" means that every part of the teenager will be reused in another human's body; theoretically, the child does not die since every part is still alive in another body.  The scariest aspect of this book is that nothing is really that implausible.  

Unwind focuses on three runaway teens marked to be unwound.  If they can stay alive and hidden until their 18th birthdays, they will not be unwound.  As they hide from authorities, sometimes alone, sometimes with the help of an underground network of helpers, they grapple with questions like "Is being unwound the same as dying?" and "What happens to your soul if you are unwound?"  

This book was very similar in theme to The Adoration of Jenna Fox, although quite different in style.  Both books will appeal to students and adults who don't mind being faced with tough moral questions.