UNWIND BY NEAL SHUSTERMAN

Book Talk By: Lian Bourret

The Heartland War (Second Civil War): A war fought over abortion. There were three sides the Life Army, the Choice Brigade, and the remains of the American military. People who supported the Life Army were killing abortion doctors, People who supported the Choice Brigade were getting pregnant just to sell fetal tissue. The American military were suppose to keep both sides from killing each other, but in the end it was fractured and both side were able to get combat weapons. Eventually a compromise was reached, but not a very good one. Bill of Life: The Bill of life was made as a compromise to stop the war. It was made up of the Unwind Accord and the Storking Initiative. The Unwind Accord: The statement that until a child has reached the ages between 13 and 18, their life is untouchable. When they do reach the age between 13 and 18, they can be unwound, or abort retroactively, This is allowed because the kids are still alive technically but in a divided state. The Storking Initiative: The law that gives parents, the right to "stork" their new born babies. Since abortion is illegal, to give away children they cannot provide for or simply do not want them, they can choose to leave the child on someone else's doorstep. If the parents do not get caught, the family is obliged to keep the baby. If the parents are caught, they must either keep the baby or send them to State Homes to be wards. State homes: an orphanage for orphans/unwanted children. There kids must choose a path to lead, if they succeed in that path they will live, but if they fail in some way, they are unwound to cut the budget. Also kids in wards have to change their last name to Ward. Tithe: Kids who are unwound by religion, they are picked before they are born and grow up knowing that there are going to be unwound. Most kids embrace the idea saying it is their duty to God, but some rebel. Harvest camps: place where kids are sent to be unwound Unwind: the act of taking apart a kid between the ages of 13 and 18. the law states that they must use 99.44% of the childs body. Their parts are used to replace sick, damaged, etc. parts. The also states that clappers, severely damaged people, and pregnant people cannot be unwound because they have bad parts that cannot be transferred into a new body. Kids must also be conscious during the procedure according to the law (so the body parts are fresh and working) and they do this by using a special formula that allow the kids to be alive even without important body parts and even allows them to talk and also have pain relievers so the patient cant feel anything at all.

Definitions

Setting
This book is set in the future after the second Civil War called, The Heartland War in the United States.

Connor Michael Lassiter: A 16 year old boy who gets in fights a lot because when he gets angry he cant see much logic and acts on his instincts. He becomes an AWOL unwind after discovering the papers his parents signed to get him unwound. He runs away and faces challenges along the way. He also finds friends to help him get to 18 so he cant be unwound and finds enemies that try to bring him down. Risa Megan Ward: A street wise girl who is able to trick people into doing what she wants. Since she was raised in a state home she learned how to survive on her own without any help making her very stiff and rarely off guard. She is a gifted piano player, but when messes up in her recital at her state home, she is sent to be unwound to save money. She is able to escape from the bus when a car crash happens on the highway. Here she meets Connor (who caused the accident while escaping the police) and they become allies and later, friends from trying to keep each alive until the age of 18. Levi "Lev" Jedediah Calder: In the beginning he was a naive 13 year old who believed that because he was a tithe that it was his destiny to be unwound and that his body parts are special and blessed by God. After his 13th birthday party, he is driven to the harvest camp, but on the highway, his car skids to a stop when they see the car crash above. Lev becomes scared and gets out of the car and meets Connor who is standing by his car. He is scared by Connor think he is a terrorist and tells him he is a tithe. Connor tells him that he is an unwind and then Lev is hit by the cops who are shooting tranq bullets that were aimed at Connor. Connor thinking that Lev did not want to unwound, dragged him into the woods with Risas help. They keep him safe, but Lev betrays them to the police about 3 days after their escape. Lev comes back to them later a changed person after spending time on the streets and learning how to survive. He said that he was sorry that he turned them in, but Risa and Connor realize that Lev had become very distant from people and seemed almost dangerous.

Main Characters

After the Heartland War between the pro-life and pro-choice armies, a compromise was mad and was called the Bill of Life. It stated that any teen between the ages of 13-18 can be unwound. People who were unwound were either troublemakers, a ward of the state, or a tithe. In other words, their bodies would be retroactively aborted but they would live on in a divided state. These body parts were harvested for others the opportunity to live a longer life. Three teens are scheduled to be unwound who are Connor, Risa, and Lev. They met each other when Connor caused a giant car crash that closed the entire highway. From there the story talks about the betrayal, terror, action, victory and defeat, and a little bit of romance the teens face as they try to find safety until they are 18 years old.

Plot

Theme
The theme of this book is having the will to survive. In this book, AWOL unwinds like Connor run away from cops, parents, etc. to protect their bodies from being taken apart. They say in the book, AWOL unwinds wont stop fighting until there isnt an ounce of consciousness left. People who take apart the unwinds, do it for money and at the harvest camps, they make them do sports to make their heart healthier, their eyes sharper, and their muscles stronger and this way, they can make more money off of them. The people who have their own damaged body parts replace with healthy new ones are using it to survive. For example, in the book Connor meets a truck driver who was almost killed in a car crash, but then his destroyed parts were replaced by a young boys. He had the will to survive by taking other peoples body parts so he could live.

Meaningful quote
Yes, it is an answer. Maybe its the best answer of all. If more people would admit they really dont know, maybe there never would have been a Heartland War.

This quote means that there are so many people out there who lie and lie to make it seem like they know everything, when in reality they know very little about what they are talking about. The Heartland War began with people thinking they knew what was right to do and persuading everyone to think like them. They didnt have any real idea, but people still believed them and this lead to a huge war where many people died. Even today they are people spreading their lies acting like they are superior. If people keep on acting this way then it will lead only to destruction and chaos.

Evaluation
5 STARS!

I like this book because it is suspenseful, has a lot of action, and seems almost real like it is a possible future for us. When I read the summary of this book you could tell it was going to be amazing. Brought together by chance, and kept together by desperation, these unlikely companions make a harrowing cross-country journey, knowing their lives hang in the balance. It they can survive until their eighteenth birthday, they cant be harmed, but when every piece of them, from their hands to their hearts, is wanted by a world gone mad, eighteen seems far, far away. The writing in this book is wonderful and the characters seem like regular teens besides the running away part.

Conclusion
What

would you do for rights for your own body? Would you blackmail, lie, deceive, or even kill? When your parents or guardian sign the unwind papers, you put all of those ideas into thought. Youre fighting the Juvie-cops who will stop at nothing to find you and send you to the harvest camps. You are running away from your own parents and your so called friends. You have to steal, lie, bribe, and make alliances to protect your bodys rights. Read Unwind by Neal Shusterman to learn what Connor, Risa, Lev, and other unwinds most do to survive the cruel society that allows this evil law.