Unwind (novel)

Unwind

Original hardcover edition
Author	Neal Shusterman
Cover artist	[Not Mentioned]
Country	United States
Language	English
Genre	Science fiction, biopunk, adventure, dystopia, dystopian fiction
Publisher	Simon & Schuster
Publication date	2007
Media type	Hardback, paperback
Pages	335

Unwind is a 2007 science fiction novel by young adult literature author Neal Shusterman. It takes place in the United States, after a civil war somewhere in the near future. After a civil war, known as the Second Civil War or the Heartland War, was fought over abortion, a compromise was reached, allowing parents to sign an order for their children between the ages of 13 and 18 to be unwound—taken to "harvest camps" and having their body parts harvested for later use. The reasoning was that since 100% of the body had 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 13 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. A second novel titled UnWholly was released in August 2012, and a third in December 2013, titled UnSouled and a fourth in October 2014, titled UnDivided. A novella, UnStrung, was also published. UnBound is the newest edition to the Unwind Dystology. It's written by Neal Shusterman (Creator), Michelle Knowlden, Jarrod Shusterman, Terry Black, and Brendan Shusterman. It was published December 15, 2015 by Simon & Schuster. This collection of novellas gives the readers more insight into the secrets and lost stories of the Unwind world.

The story centers around two teens and tithe who have been scheduled to be unwound. They are all runaways, which is known as "kicking AWOL"; Connor, a sixteen-year-old whose family believes he'd gotten into too many fights, Risa, a ward of the state who doesn't make it in the State Home's continuing program because of budget cuts, and Lev, a tithe whose rich parents had him specifically to be unwound, as he is the tenth child. Lev and his family believe 10% of everything they have should be given to the Church, including Lev. Connor discovers his unwind order and decides to "kick AWOL", and tries to convince his friend Ariana to go with him. She agrees but later backs out, and he runs off alone with the help of a trucker. However, his cell phone tracker gets him caught. Connor resists arrest and flees the Juvey-cops, running into traffic and snatching a tithe (Lev) from a car to use as a hostage and human shield. The chaos which ensues causes a bus full of State Home wards (StaHo kids) on their way to the harvest camp to overturn, and provides Risa with the perfect opportunity to escape. Risa, Connor, and Lev flee into the woods, and are pursued briefly by a Juvey-cop, whom Connor shoots with the officer's own tranquilizer gun after he is baited by Risa.