Unwind
- Genre: Fiction; young adult dystopian
- Originally Published: 2007
- Reading Level/Interest: Lexile 740L; grades 8-9
- Structure/Length: 69 chapters; approx. 384 pages; approx. 10 hours, 9 minutes on audio
- Protagonist and Central Conflict: After the Second Civil War in a future United States, abortion is illegal from the moment of conception; however, parents can opt to have their children aged 13-18 “unwound”—where their bodies are dismembered and repurposed. Three teenagers, Connor, Risa, and Lev, flee their eventual fate and fight to prove that their lives are worth saving.
- Potential Sensitivity Issues: Abortion; abuse; foster care; physical threat of sexual assault; violence
Neal Shusterman, Author
- Bio: Born 1962 in Brooklyn, New York; became a writer after his ninth-grade English teacher challenged him to write a story every month; moved from Brooklyn to Mexico City at age 16 and finished high school there; graduated from UC Irvine, where he studied psychology and theater; received National Book Award for Young People’s Literature (2015) for his book Challenger Deep
- Other Works: Downsiders (1999); Full Tilt (2004); Unwind Dystology series (2007-2014); Arc of a Scythe trilogy (2016-2019)
- Awards: ALA Best Books for Young Adults (2008)
CENTRAL THEMES connected and noted throughout this Teaching Unit:
- One Versus Many
- What Is Morality?
- Inner Versus Outer Strength
STUDY OBJECTIVES: In accomplishing the components of this Unit, students will: