What I Read Wednesday: A New Dystopian Favorite

Sooooo...I haven't exactly read much since I last posted 2 weeks ago.  How terrible of a reader am I?!  I cannot wait until my fall break starts the week after next, because I can hopefully sit and enjoy a couple books in that one week.  Big dreams and big hopes...we will see how well that works out for me, especially since I plan to do some fall cleaning and laundry catch-up!  Head over to Amy's post at Juice Boxes and Crayolas to check out other people's reads.

That being said, I did quite enjoy a dystopian fiction novel that has been on my to-reads list since I joined Goodreads almost 3 years ago.  Yikes!  Thankfully, I threw this choice in to my book club voting poll and it was this month's pick.  Finally, I was able to read it and it did not disappoint.

Unwind by Neal Shusterman | Seeing as how Hunger Games is my all-time favorite dystopian fiction novel, and many others that I have read have not topped it...I am happy to say this one is a definite stand-out in this genre. It has so many philosophical and morality issues faced in the present.  But because it is dystopian, it gives you a view into what all these arguments and violent reactions could possibly cause...AKA The Heartland Wars (the 2nd Civil War) over pro-life and pro-choice.

Kids can basically be "sold" by their families if they are unruly or not learning to be good and unwound so that every single body part and organ can be passed on to someone in need.  In this way, humans live on, thereby bypassing the whole dying or wasting a life argument.  But as one can imagine, this is still pretty darn immoral!  Any child can be unwound, until they turn 18.  Not only that, there are kids called tithes, who are born and then raised knowing they are going to be unwound because it follows their religious beliefs...a sacrifice.

You can possibly imagine how many people go against this insanely immoral practice, so many children run away and try to escape either before they are unwound or when they are on their way to be unwound at what they call harvest camps.  It just keeps getting crazier doesn't it?!

So of course, the main characters cover the gamete of children facing unwinding.  This story is told from each of their points of view (back and forth between chapters) and even random people or groups are thrown in to share their point of view.  I loved this style of writing as it really helped me see, feel, and consider all sides of this unwinding process brought on by the Heartland Wars.

Just know, you will question yourself as you read this as you are slammed with situation after situation of life surrounding Unwinding.  Neal Shusterman has definitely joined my list of authors I want to read more from...including the rest of this series.

From Goodreads:  The Second Civil War was fought over reproductive rights. The chilling resolution: Life is inviolable from the moment of conception until age thirteen. Between the ages of thirteen and eighteen, however, parents can have their child "unwound," whereby all of the child's organs are transplanted into different donors, so life doesn't technically end. Connor is too difficult for his parents to control. Risa, a ward of the state is not enough to be kept alive. And Lev is a tithe, a child conceived and raised to be unwound. Together, they may have a chance to escape and to survive.

My rating:  5 out of 5 stars ||  Goodreads Average:  4.22 stars

Please feel free to add me on Goodreads or follow my reviews there.  I absolutely love discovering new and interesting books that I may not have found otherwise.  

What have you read lately?  Anything you care to share?