Publisher Description

In America after the Second Civil War, the Pro-Choice and Pro-Life armies came to an agreement: The Bill of Life states that human life may not be touched from the moment of conception until a child reaches the age of thirteen. Between the ages of thirteen and eighteen, however, a parent may choose to retroactively get rid of a child through a process called "unwinding." Unwinding ensures that the child's life doesn't "technically" end by transplanting all the organs in the child's body to various recipients. Now a common and accepted practice in society, troublesome or unwanted teens are able to easily be unwound.

With breath-taking suspense, this book follows three teens who all become runaway Unwinds: Connor, a rebel whose parents have ordered his unwinding; Risa, a ward of the state who is to be unwound due to cost-cutting; and Lev, his parents' tenth child whose unwinding has been planned since birth as a religious tithing. As their paths intersect and lives hang in the balance, Shusterman examines serious moral issues in a way that will keep readers turning the pages to see if Connor, Risa, and Lev avoid meeting their untimely ends.

Author Biography

Neal Shusterman is the award-winning author of more than thirty books for teens that span many genres. He has also written screenplays for motion pictures and television shows such as "Animorphs" and "Goosebumps". He won the "Boston Globe-Horn Book" Award for "The Schwa Was Here" and has had numerous books on American Library Association and International Reading Association award lists, including "Unwind" and "Everlost". Neal lives in Southern California with his four children.

Review

"Well-written, this draws the readers into a world that is both familiar and strangely foreign, and generates feelings of horror, disturbance, disgust and fear. As with classics such as "1984" and "Fahrenheit 451", one can only hope that this vision of the future never becomes reality."--"Kirkus Reviews" "The power of the novel lies in what it doesn't do: come down explicitly on one side or the other."--"The New York Times Book Review" "Nail-biting, character-driven thriller."--"The Horn Book" * "A thought-provoking, well-paced read that will appeal widely."--"School Library Journal", starred review "Poignant, compelling, and ultimately terrifying, this book will enjoy popularity with a wide range of readers."--"VOYA", 4Q4P "Following in the footsteps of Jonathan Swift, Shusterman uncorks a Modest Proposal of his own to solve a Pro-Life/Pro-Choice dilemma...ingeniously developed cast and premise."--"Booklist" * "Gripping, brilliantly imagined futuristic thriller...The issues raised could not be more provocative--the sanctity of life, the meaning of being human--while the delivery could hardly be more engrossing or better aimed to teens."--"Publishers Weekly, "starred review "The shocking premise is unveiled immediately, and a nail-biting pace is sustained throughout, with the teens flung headlong into a true life-or-death struggle...these haunting debates will likely linger in the reader's mind even after the riveting plot fades...an ideal blend of philosophy and action set in a compelling futuristic landscape."--"The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books"

Prizes

Winner of Green Mountain Book Award 2010

Review Quote

"Well-written, this draws the readers into a world that is both familiar and strangely foreign, and generates feelings of horror, disturbance, disgust and fear. As with classics such as1984andFahrenheit 451, one can only hope that this vision of the future never becomes reality."--Kirkus Reviews

Description for Reading Group Guide

About the Book In the not-too-distant future, teens Connor, Risa, and Lev are on the run for their lives. Following the Second Civil War, between pro-choice and pro-life forces, the United States now allows parents to unwind their unwanted and difficult kids between the ages of thirteen and eighteen: Their bodies are surgically taken apart and all the organs and tissue are used in other people. According to the law, the kids aren''t considered dead, they''re "living in a divided state." But Connor, Risa, and Lev, and thousands of other teens slated for "unwinding", don''t see it that way. They choose instead to "kick AWOL," or run away. Unwind follows these three across the country as they travel together, split up, and meet again when their destinies cross in a Harvest Camp where they are slated to be unwound. Prereading Research/Activities Have students research those who helped endangered people in the past. They can study the pre-Civil War Underground Railroad, a vast network of individuals who helped runaway slaves make their way to freedom. They can also research the stories of those who helped Jews escape the Nazis, including Oskar Schindler, Raoul Wallenberg, and Chiune Sugihara. The novel takes places after the "Second Civil War." The real Civil War was fought primarily over the issue of slavery. Learn about recent civil wars in other countries. What issues--such as religion, race, or politics--have they been fought over? In small groups, discuss the idea of a second civil war in this country, and what it might be fought over. Do you think it could happen here? Find out how many people today elect to donate their organs after their death. What is the process to do so? How are the organs handled and delivered? How many lives do they save? Ask other students how many of them intend to donate their organs. Stage a debate: Discuss whether it is a good idea to donate organs. If so, why do so few people do it? Discussion Topics 1. How would you feel if you discovered you were going to be unwound? What would you do? If you didn''t want to go along with it but couldn''t run away like Connor and the others in the novel, what other options might you have? 2. How would you feel if you were in an accident, or had a rare disease, and you could be cured only if your damaged organs were replaced by parts taken from unwound teens? What would you choose to do? What if you were certain to die if you refused the parts? What if it wasn''t you, but someone you loved (a parent, a sibling) who was in an accident? Would your answer be different? 3. You just found out the person sitting next to you is going to be unwound. Come up with ten good reasons why they should NOT be. Remember, their life may depend on it! 4. When do you think the story takes place? The book never reveals the year. How many years in the future might it be? What clues hint at how much time has passed? What companies or products are named? What societal norms can you point to that have changed or remained the same? What are the similarities between the world of Unwind and our own world? What are the differences? 5. Which of the three main characters, Connor, Risa, or Lev, do you most identify with? Why? What traits do you have in common? Which of their traits work for them, and which make their lives harder? Which of your own traits would you like to give up? Which would you want to keep? 6. In the course of the book, Connor and Risa get separated from Lev, who travels for a time with another character. Why do you think the author chose to split the narrative into two distinct threads? What do you think this achieves? How does this affect the evolution of the characters? 7. Compare the similarities and differences of Lev''s journey with Cyrus to Joplin, Missouri, in Unwind to Huck''s travel with Jim down the Mississippi River in the novel Huckleberry Finn . 8. While being transported to possible safety, some of the kids on the run wonder, "Would it be better to die or be unwound?" If given the choice, which would you choose? Why? 9. Another question the kids in the book discuss is, "If every part of you is still alive but inside someone else, are you alive or are you dead?" They also wonder if consciousness can exist even if it''s spread out, and if the soul remains intact. What do you think? 10. Which adults in the story are depicted sympathetically? Which do you feel are not sympathetic? Do any shift from one to the other? How did the author describe these characters to make you feel one way or the other about them? 11. Risa is assigned to play in a band at a Harvest Camp, performing upbeat tunes while teens are marched to their unwinding. Risa is conflicted: She knows playing in the band will keep her alive longer, but it''s at the expense of others, and her joy at having her fingers on a piano is matched by the horror of knowing what''s going on around her. How would you feel in this situation? Would you accept the position? Are there any situations in history similar to this? 12. What positive consequences do you imagine would be realized by a society where unwinding exists? What are the negatives? Do you think the negatives outweigh the positives, or the other way around? 13. A euphemism is a mild word or phrase that''s used to refer to something unpleasant or embarrassing. "Living in a divided state" is a euphemism officials in the novel use in place of "being unwound." Another euphemism in the novel is "harvest camps" in place of "unwinding facilities." Can you think of any commonly used euphemisms in real life? Why do you think people use euphemisms? 14. In the novel, unwinding becomes big business, as there''s a lot of money to be made from ill people and accident victims requiring fresh organs, and the population looks the other way, not considering the source. Are there any present-day situations you can think of where ethics have been compromised because of money, or because it''s simply easier not to think about it? Predict a situation in the future where greed or denial could defeat morals. 15. Imagine that you are approached to join the Clappers, the novel''s futuristic terrorists. How would you respond? What would you tell them? 16. Connor''s anger and lack of impulse control is often a problem for him, until he learns to control and channel his emotions. Do you ever feel like your impulses are stronger than your will? What strategies do you use to control your feelings? Do they work? 17. The bully, Roland, makes life hard for Connor and Risa from the time they meet him. What do you think of his ultimate payback? Did you think it was fair? Was it satisfying, or did it make you squirm or both? Why? Activities In the novel, Sonia, the owner of the antique shop, has each of the teens she helps write a letter to someone they love. Write your own letter to someone you love and, like the kids in the novel, put everything you want to say to that person, good and bad, in the letter. Would you be willing to show this letter to the person you wrote it to? Why or why not? What about in three or four years? Draw up a will; instead of possessions, it''s your personality that you''re giving away. List your personality traits. What parts of your personality (your sense of humor, your determination, etc.) would you give away, and to whom? Prepare testimony to Congress as they begin hearings on the status of the Bill of Life. Write your testimony from the point of view of a teen slated to be unwound or from someone whose life was saved by receiving body parts from an unwound teen. Hold hearings, where several students share their testimony with the class. Then debate whether the law should be changed or not. Risa''s band plays "Don''t Fear the Reaper," amon

Excerpt from Book

Unwind 1 * Connor "There are places you can go," Ariana tells him, "and a guy as smart as you has a decent chance of surviving to eighteen." Connor isn''t so sure, but looking into Ariana''s eyes makes his doubts go away, if only for a moment. Her eyes are sweet violet with streaks of gray. She''s such a slave to fashion--always getting the newest pigment injection the second it''s in style. Connor was never into that. He''s always kept his eyes the color they came in. Brown. He never even got tattoos, like so many kids get these days when they''re little. The only color on his skin is the tan it takes during the summer, but now, in November, that tan has long faded. He tries not to think about the fact that he''ll never see the summer again. At least not as Connor Lassiter. He still can''t believe that his life is being stolen from him at sixteen. Ariana''s violet eyes begin to shine as they fill with tears that flow down her cheeks when she blinks. "Connor, I''m so sorry." She holds him, and for a moment it seems as if everything is okay, as if they are the only two people on Earth. For that instant, Connor feels invincible, untouchable . . . but she lets go, the moment passes, and the world around him returns. Once more he can feel the rumble of the freeway beneath them, as cars pass by, not knowing or caring that he''s here. Once more he is just a marked kid, a week short of unwinding. The soft, hopeful things Ariana tells him don''t help now. He can barely hear her over the rush of traffic. This place where they hide from the world is one of those dangerous places that make adults shake their heads, grateful that their own kids aren''t stupid enough to hang out on the ledge of a freeway overpass. For Connor it''s not about stupidity, or even rebellion--it''s about feeling life. Sitting on this ledge, hidden behind an exit sign is where he feels most comfortable. Sure, one false step and he''s roadkill. Yet for Connor, life on the edge is home. There have been no other girls he''s brought here, although he hasn''t told Ariana that. He closes his eyes, feeling the vibration of the traffic as if it''s pulsing through his veins, a part of him. This has always been a good place to get away from fights with his parents, or when he just feels generally boiled. But now Connor''s beyond boiled--even beyond fighting with his mom and dad. There''s nothing more to fight about. His parents signed the order--it''s a done deal. "We should run away," Ariana says. "I''m fed up with everything, too. My family, school, everything. I could kick-AWOL, and never look back." Connor hangs on the thought. The idea of kicking-AWOL by himself terrifies him. He might put up a tough front, he might act like the bad boy at school--but running away on his own? He doesn''t even know if he has the guts. But if Ariana comes, that''s different. That''s not alone. "Do you mean it?" Ariana looks at him with her magical eyes. "Sure. Sure I do. I could leave here. If you asked me." Connor knows this is major. Running away with an Unwind--that''s commitment. The fact that she would do it moves him beyond words. He kisses her, and in spite of everything going on in his life Connor suddenly feels like the luckiest guy in the world. He holds her--maybe a little too tightly, because she starts to squirm. It just makes him want to hold her even more tightly, but he fights that urge and lets go. She smiles at him. "AWOL . . ." she says. "What does that mean, anyway?" "It''s an old military term or something," Connor says. "It means ''absent without leave.''" Ariana thinks about it, and grins. "Hmm. More like ''alive without lectures.''" Connor takes her hand, trying hard not to squeeze it too tightly. She said she''d go if he asked her. Only now does he realize he hasn''t actually asked yet. "Will you come with me, Ariana?" Ariana smiles and nods. "Sure," she says. "Sure I will." * * * Ariana''s parents don''t like Connor. "We always knew he''d be an Unwind," he can just hear them saying. "You should have stayed away from that Lassiter boy." He was never "Connor" to them. He was always "that Lassiter boy." They think that just because he''s been in and out of disciplinary school they have a right to judge him. Still, when he walks her home that afternoon, he stops short of her door, hiding behind a tree as she goes inside. Before he heads home, he thinks how hiding is now going to be a way of life for both of them. * * * Home. Connor wonders how he can call the place he lives home, when he''s about to be evicted--not just from the place he sleeps, but from the hearts of those who are supposed to love him. His father sits in a chair, watching the news as Connor enters. "Hi, Dad." His father points at some random carnage on the news. "Clappers again." "What did they hit this time?" "They blew up an Old Navy in the North Akron mall." "Hmm," says Connor. "You''d think they''d have better taste." "I don''t find that funny." Connor''s parents don''t know that Connor knows he''s being unwound. He wasn''t supposed to find out, but Connor has always been good at ferreting out secrets. Three weeks ago, while looking for a stapler in his dad''s home office, he found airplane tickets to the Bahamas. They were going on a family vacation over Thanksgiving. One problem, though: There were only three tickets. His mother, his father, his younger brother. No ticket for him. At first he just figured the ticket was somewhere else, but the more he thought about it, the more it seemed wrong. So Connor went looking a little deeper when his parents were out, and he found it. The Unwind order. It had been signed in old-fashioned triplicate. The white copy was already gone--off with the authorities. The yellow copy would accompany Connor to his end, and the pink would stay with his parents, as evidence of what they''d done. Perhaps they would frame it and hang it alongside his first-grade picture. The date on the order was the day before the Bahamas trip. He was going off to be unwound, and they were going on vacation to make themselves feel better about it. The unfairness of it had made Connor want to break something. It had made him want to break a lot of things--but he hadn''t. For once he had held his temper, and aside from a few fights in school that weren''t his fault, he kept his emotions hidden. He kept what he knew to himself. Everyone knew that an unwind order was irreversible, so screaming and fighting wouldn''t change a thing. Besides, he found a certain power in knowing his parents'' secret. Now the blows he could deal them were so much more effective. Like the day he brought flowers home for his mother and she cried for hours. Like the B-plus he brought home on a science test. Best grade he ever got in science. He handed it to his father, who looked at it, the color draining from his face. "See, Dad, my grades are getting better. I could even bring my science grade up to an A by the end of the semester." An hour later his father was sitting in a chair, still clutching the test in his hand, and staring blankly at the wall. Connor''s motivation was simple: Make them suffer. Let them know for the rest of their lives what a horrible mistake they made. But there was no sweetness to this revenge, and now, three weeks of rubbing it in their faces has made him feel no better. In spite of himself he''s starting to feel bad for his parents, and he hates that he feels that way. "Did I miss dinner?" His father doesn''t look away from the TV. "Your mother left a plate for you." Connor heads off toward the kitchen, but halfway there he hears: "Connor?" He turns to see his father looking at him. Not just looking, but staring. He''s going to tell me now, Connor thinks. He''s going to tell me they''re unwinding me, and then break down in tears, going on and on about how sorry sorry sorry he is about it all. If he does, Connor just might accept the apology. He might even forgive him, and then tell him that he doesn''t plan to be here when the Juvey-cops come to take him away. But in the end all his father says is, "Did you lock the door when you came in?" "I''ll do it now." Connor locks the door, then goes to his room, no longer hungry for whatever it is his mother saved for him. * * * At two in the morning Connor dresses in black and fills a backpack with the things that really matter to him. He still has room for three changes of clothes. He finds it amazing, when it comes down to it, how few things are worth taking. Memories, mostly. Reminders of a time before things went so wrong between him and his parents. Between him and the rest of the world. Connor peeks in on his brother, thinks about waking him to say good-bye, then decides it''s not a good idea. He silently slips out into the night. He can''t take his bike, because he had installed an antitheft tracking device. Connor never considered that he might be the one stealing it. Ariana has bikes for both of them though. Ariana''s house is a twenty-minute walk, if you take the conventional route. Suburban Ohio neighborhoods never have streets that go in straight lines, so instead he takes the more direct route, through the woods, and makes it there i

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