this book is about organ transplant and stuff. scared the hell
out of me about donating organings and scared the shit out of me
that made me want to sign the opt-out form for HOTA.
Unwind is a 2007 science
fiction novel by young adult
literature author Neal Shusterman.
It takes place in the United States, somewhere in the near future.
After a civil war—known as the Second Civil War or the Heartland
War—is fought over abortion, a compromise
was reached, allowing parents to sign an order for their children
between the ages of 13 and 18 years old to be unwound—taken to
"harvest camps" and having their body parts harvested for later
use. The reasoning was that, since 100% (actually 99.44% taking
into account the appendix and "useless" organs) was required to be
used, unwinds did not technically "die", because their individual
body parts lived on. In addition to unwinding, parents who are
unable to raise their children to age thirteen for retroactive
abortion have the option to "stork" their child by leaving it on
another family's porch. If they don't get caught, the "storked"
baby then becomes the other family's responsibility.
Unwind received positive reviews upon release, with praise
focusing on the novel's immersive environment and sociological
implications. It also received many awards from young adult
literature authorities. A film adaptation of Unwind is
currently in production by independent producers.[1] A
second novel titled UnWholly was
released in August 2012.[2]
Thanks to Connor, Lev, and Risa—and their high-profile revolt at
Happy Jack Harvest Camp—people can no longer turn a blind eye to
unwinding. Ridding society of troublesome teens while simltaneously
providing much-needed tissues for transplant might be convenient,
but its morality has finally been brought into question. However,
unwinding has become big business, and there are powerful political
and corporate interests that want to see it not only continue, but
also expand to the unwinding of prisoners and the
impoverished.
Cam is a product of unwinding; made entirely out of the parts of
other unwinds, he is a teen who does not technically exist. A
futuristic Frankenstein, Cam struggles with a search for identity
and meaning and wonders if a rewound being can have a soul. And
when the actions of a sadistic bounty hunter cause Cam’s fate to
become inextricably bound with the fates of Connor, Risa, and Lev,
he’ll have to question humanity itself.
Rife with action and suspense, this riveting companion to the
perennially popular Unwind challenges assumptions about where life
begins and ends—and what it means to live
