Unwind

Well...I can say with great confidence that I will be purchasing the rest of the books in this series (I'd like to insert here an apology to my bank account). But wow! I won't lie, when I read the synopsis to Neal Shusterman's Unwind, I literally gasped in horror. In fact, I said out loud, "who the hell thinks of a plot like this"? Verbatim. So because of that, I kind of refused to like this book. Any inconsistencies I found in the beginning chapters (which were practically nonexistent) I scoffed at and ridiculed. I should also mention first that I began reading this book laying on my bed, in a relaxed position (don't worry, this information is important). Anyways, couple chapters further into the book, I got really into the book. Specifically the characters (all of them). And before I knew it I was sitting up right with a clenched heart, practically holding my breath for the safety of the characters; as well as the heart-stopping twists and turns at the end of each chapter towards the end of the book. Shusterman does a phenomenal job in creating characters for the readers to care about--especially characters that aren't even major to the story. I think he was able to accomplish this due to the altering narration between each chapter.

The main characters of Unwind goes to: Connor, an unruly kid too much for his parents to control, then there's Risa, a ward of the state with not enough potential to be kept alive and  lastly there's Liv, a child born to become a tithe and willing to become unwound. Though they each come from different backgrounds, they are all destined the same fate. To survive (one of the prominent themes throughout the book).

Sure it took a domino effect of coincidences for them to all meet and escape the horrors of unwinding, but even after being split up, they continued to find themselves drawn back to each other. Compared to the other characters in Unwind, these three went through intense character developments (for the better). Connor who was once so headstrong to the point of his own destruction, matured into boy (man?) who used his influence to steer those lost the right way. Risa in my opinion never really changed. From the beginning and even in the end of this book, she always remained a smart girl, always aware of her surroundings for the most part. The stereotype that women depend on men (in this case Risa depending on Connor) never really happened (which I loved). If anything, they depended on each other quite heavily. Lev drastically changed. No longer naive was he and I'm excited to see what happens to Lev in the next part of this series.

Developments like this created a strong voice in their chapters and its no wonder why they are considered the major characters. But there were some minor characters that deserve some limelight as well--like Ronald for example. 

So at first I immediately got sus vibes (suspicious inklings) from Ronald when I was first introduced to him in the old Dragon's basement (I forgot her name but still remember Hayden's "affectionate" nickname for her). Though a smart individual, he came across too controlling and quite power hungry. He resorted to using his intelligence for "evil" (I say this lightly) and conditioned those around him to hate the Admiral or anyone with authority. The whole time I read his character and the things he was doing, I kept on thinking why? Why do this when you are free of being unwound? I knew he knew what was going on the graveyard was not as bad as being unwound. He was not stupid. And for a second, I thought he finally realized his error of ways when he agreed to fly the Admiral to the hospital...but then he ratted everyone out. Causing Connor, Risa and him to go the the harvest camp (at this point I was so done with him). 

I was on complete edge during the harvest camp chapters. Literally. My roommate, who walked past my room, stopped to stare and laughed at my frazzled state. But anyways, after he became a rat. I though I couldn't care less about Roland. But I was wrong. I was sooo wrong. When the time came for him to be unwound, yes I was a bit sorry but when I realized Shusterman intended to include a chapter on what went on in the Chop Shop (damn you Shusterman) I gasped out loud. Again. Reading that chapter was really hard for me. It was just so....disturbing. I still can't fathom how that nurse was able to talk to Roland throughout the whole procedure with a polite smile on her face! And the fact that they talked about a Lakers game once he couldn't talk anymore?! One by one as Roland's memories began to fade, the sorrow I felt rose higher and higher. I really got the sense of the theme, identity in this chapter when readers see Roland's identity fading from "I'm still here" to "I'm still" to "I'm" to "I" and then to nothing (Shusterman 293). 

I think the chapters near the end, catered to Roland narration, really showed his true character. And I think that's why Shusterman had Connor end up with his arm after the explosion (that tiger shark tattoo is a great status detail). The arm that strangled Connors neck, almost to the point of death, but let go the last second because he was not a killer (rip Roland).

There was also other characters that I quite liked, like Hayden. The best description to his character is this line from the book, "I'm Switzerland: neutral as can be, and also good with chocolate." (Shusterman 243). I'd like to believe that this line sums me up as a person as well (lol). 

This book seems positions teens into three categories: those with potential, those without potential, and those naive about everything. I'm sure this book would appeal to adolescents who find themselves conflicted about trying to fit into a category society deems appropriate and also appeal to adolescents who don't appreciate fitting into such conformity all together. 

Grade: A+