unwind

Unwind by Neal Shusterman

The young adult novel Unwind takes a really controversial topic, abortion, and gives it a science fiction twist. In the near future, the war over abortion rights was fought and there were casualties on both sides. An agreement was reached between the two sides—it became legal to “unwind” teenagers under the age of 17. Their parts are harvested for organ transplants. Although at times the story got a little hokey for me, I found it interesting to think about a future where child murder is state sanctioned—actual murder, of human beings who had lives and grew as old as 17. This is a book that will invite conversation about what it means to be alive, where our rights start and stop, and if any agreement will ever be reached about such a controversial subject.