Unwind Book Review

The novel Unwind, written by author Neal Shusterman, is an amazing science-fiction thriller. The book tells the story of three teenagers in a terrible future where a practice known as unwinding is accepted in there society. Parents may have their child (person under eighteen years of age) unwound, if they are displeased with them. For that, they must sign a waver, and from there, the child is picked up and taken to a harvest camp. Eventually (soon after the child's arrival), the child will be humanly taken apart. Their body parts will be donated to people who have experienced incidents and have lost a body part, or to just greedy freaks that want something as stupid as a new eye color. The main characters Connor, Lev, and Risa try to get escape from this cruel society and live to the age of eighteen (adulthood), so that way, the government cannot have them legally unwound. This is quite a challenge, due to the fact that Juvey-cops are everywhere on the lookout to captire and turn in any runaway Unwinds. Whenever I read this book, certain thoughts started coming to me. I began thinking about which audience would enjoy this story the most. The character that changed the most ever since they became an Unwind. And, of course, how did this book compare to other science-fiction books that I have read.

Identifying the intended audience was possibly one of the most simplest things that I have ever done in my life. The book centers around three teenagers and their struggle for survival by escaping the almost certain fate of every Unwind. The book has quite a bit of action, some mild blood and gore, and a few teenage romances. So, from what I am able to deduce from this, this book is strongly intended for teenagers and young adults. Primarily those that have a bit of knowledge of the Pro-life and Pro-choice causes. Unwinding was created in order to please both sides, in some strange way. All of the three main characters share some things in common. Like that fact that they are all were going to be unwound, and they all feel a bit like loners. Teenagers can relate to the arguments Connor Lassiter and his parents have all the time. Connor's parents want him unwound because he is a trouble-maker in school, always getting into fights. He does not have many friends either. So now, his parents are fed up with him, and have signed the unwinding order that will have the State send people to pick him up. At one point, when Connor was younger, his parents used to love him. Now, all that they do is argue with each other. "'Why do you have to get wound so tight?' his father once asked, exasperated, and Connor had snapped back, 'Maybe someone oughta unwind me'" (pg. 94). Connor later on runs away from home, before the people from the state come to collect him for unwinding. Risa on the other hand, has no parents. She is a Ward and lives at a Sta-Ho (state home), a place that is pretty much a large orphanage. As an orphan she has learned not to trust many people, except for Mr. Durkin, her piano teacher. He has become nearly a father to her. The third main character is Lev. He was a tithe (to be unwound as a proper sacrifice to God) with some pretty darn religious Christian parents. They were the ones that guided him down that path. It was quite lonely because, growing up, there are not many tithe, especially of the same religion. But, Lev's entire world begins to change once he and Connor cross paths.

Levi Jedediah Calder is one of the three young main characters. Of them, he is the youngest, but appears to undergo the greatest change. At the age of thirteen, his Christian parents threw him a tithing party before he was to be unwound. His oldest brother Marcus, was the only person who openly disapproved of his parents actions by simply letting Lev go with God. He caused a big commotion at Lev's party that Lev had not fully understood. Marcus goes and says, "'Gotta wrap up all those life events, all those parties, into one-birthdays, wedding, funeral'" (pg. 29). He wanted Lev to hear what sort of impact unwinding has on families. Lev did not fully understand what was going on because his father then shields Lev from the truth by asking Marcus to leave. A few days later, when Lev's time has come, and Pastor Dan and his parents are driving him to the harvest camp, there is a huge incident on the highway they were on. One thing led to another, and all of a sudden Lev is captured by Connor and Risa. Lev thought that he was being held hostage at first, so he plays it cool. Lev's tithing had been interrupted, and he was angry with these two Unwinds. So, Lev plans it all out. "Let them think they're earning his trust. And once they're lulled into their own false sense of security, he'll make sure they both get exactly what they deserve" (pg. 43).

The time does come. At a school where Connor, Lev, and Risa were seeking refuge, Lev called the cops and told a few teachers that he was kid-napped by two Unwinds. But, after a talk with Pastor Dan, Lev is told that he does not have to live the life of a tithe. His parents did not call in a search for Lev, so he felt pretty hurt by that because it showed his parents had a lack of caring. Lev helps Connor and Risa escape the school situation and gets separated from them in the process. By this time, Lev had made the transformation of tithe to Unwind, and gains a new companion on the way. The solder outhern accented umber skinned guy's name is Cyrus Finch, but goes by the name CyFi (he is a runaway, but not an Unwind). Lev and Cy grow quite close together on their voyage. All it took was one obsessive-compulsive shop-lifting episode, and Cy tells his secret. He had a whole piece of an Unwind's brain because of an accident he had long ago. The Unwind's name is Tyler. Tyler does not know of his unwound state, but for some reason really needs to go to the city of Joplin. When Lev and CyFi get to Joplin, CyFi 's parents are already there waiting for him to meet Tyler's parents, and Tyler takes over Cy's whole body. Tyler apologizes to his parents for all the bad things he has done (obsessive-compulsively steal shiny objects) and begs them not to have him unwound. All that Tyler's parents do is stand there holding each other feeling victimized that their son has come back to plague them. They do not feel any remorse for their son who they had unwound. Then, Lev yells and threatens Tyler's parents and commands them to tell Tyler they will not unwind him. When they finally do, Tyler gets his closure, and CyFi takes over again. This is when Lev escapes in all the chaos with the great feeling of change in him before the Juvey-cops arrive. "He knows he's been changed by this moment, transformed in some deep and frightening way" (pg. 193).

Lev later on shows up at the Graveyard, a place where run by Admiral Dunfree where worn down planes are stored, resold, and also where Unwinds can hide. Here is where Lev meets up with Connor and Risa. Their old conflicts are resolved, and they become dear friends. Risa and Connor notice the "new Lev" and just decide to live with it. But, also, the Graveyard is where Lev joins the secret group of Clappers. These Clappers have a solution injected into them so that in a few days, their bodies become dangerously unstable, to the point that they can blow up. All that it takes is a strong enough impact on the surface of their body, a clap or two should do. Lev became this suicidal Clapper because he wanted the world to "suffer a small part of the loss and the emptiness and the utter disillusionment he feels inside" (pg. 284). Lev and a few other Clappers are then sent from the Graveyard to Happy Jack Harvest Camp in Arizona. Their mission is to destroy the Chop Shop (the place where the adolescents are unwound) inside. At high noon, his two Clapper companions detonate (after experiencing a bit of hesitation). Lev gets ready to detonate, but realizes that his two friends, Connor and Risa were at the Chop Shop when it blew up. Connor walks out a bit dismembered (missing an eye and has a limp arm) while Lev has come to the conclusion not to detonate. Then he immediately runs to Connor's aid. Lev did not detonate not because he was scared. He was fully committed, but knowing that his friends were in danger was the feeling that prevented him from clapping. Hell, one of the reasons why Lev became a Clapper was to ensure that Connor and Risa were safe. Lev left to go out on his mission while thinking that "Connor was safe at the Graveyard... The one thing that Lev had taken comfort in-the safety of his friends..." (pg. 296).

Unwind by Neal Shusterman is a fascinating science-fiction thriller. It is one of the best, if not, the best novel I have ever read. Neal takes a highly interesting approach in telling the story of the three teenagers, Connor, Levi, and Risa, by rotating through each of their perspectives. Along the way, a few other character perspectives are included in the story (some more significant than others). In the end, all of these perspectives are put together in such a well-mannered way that just seems to fit perfectly. This book was full of so much action that I just had to read faster to find out what would happen next. After reading a certain amount of chapters, I would usually take a break and ponder about what could happen next. Some of my predictions proved to be true, others were close. The book appeals greatly toward the teenagers who have experienced times of loneliness and have a small understanding of Pro-life and Pro-choice causes. Out of the three main characters, Lev is changed the most. Throughout the book, he changes phases. He begins at the stage of a tithe, becomes an Unwind, gets angry with the world and joins the Clappers, but when the time came, he chose the righteous path and became a savior by helping Connor leading the rescue of the Chop Shop victims. Unwind is a great book. Unfortunately, I have to end this review in a "corny" matter by saying, I give Unwind a 9.5 out of 10.

Unwind Third Lit. Circle Letter

Dear reading group members,

As you both know, this is the final reading/lit. circle letter we are writing for Unwind. It might even be the last lit. circle letter we may write this year. After this, we have to get ready to write the last book review. But, I am glad to say, that I enjoyed reading this novel, almost and possibly even equivalent to being your reading group members. The quote that I am going with this week is:

"The Admiral grips his wife's arm. Neither can hold back their tears- not tears of sorrow, but of awe. If the rest of his heart were to stop now, in this moment, the Admiral would die more content than any man on Earth. He looks at the crowd and says weakly, H-Harlan?" (pg. 334).

This part of the book just seemed to leave me completely mesmerized. I was amazed at what event had taken place at the Dunfree's house. Just when I thought that the whole "Hunfree Dunfree story was correct, a small change is needed to make it true. I am not sure if it was the fact that the technology in this future did not posses the capabilities of bringing human beings back to life, or if the Dunfree's just felt if they gave their son to the people, then the people should give Harlan back to them. But, they ended up keeping all their guests alive, such as Emby. They did not kill anyone to harvest back their unwound son's body parts. They just invited everyone, and stood back to watch the magic happen.

The majority of the people being sent to harvest camps do not want to be unwound, even if others may say that Unwinds do not really die. They are still alive, technically. I am not sure if this was thoroughly tested before, but I am pretty sure that the true answer was discovered at the Dunfree's house. I am positive that when the scientists said "not dead," they meant it in terms of cells and individual body parts. They were not talking about awareness and consciousness. The ability to experience sensations such as love, hate, or jealousy. By bringing all the recipients of Harlan Dunfree's body part to one location, the Admiral and his wife had almost entirely unwound their son, Harlan. All of his body parts were there, just a bit scrambled up, but the fact that they were able to bring back his awareness, something that was lost by Roland during his unwinding, they were once able to react and communicate with their son once again.

Well. We had a good run my reading group buddies. I will see you guys some time soon to discuss the final book review.

Sincerely,
Jacob

Easing Up

It has probably been two straight weeks, maybe even longer, since I have touched my own skateboard. I need to go out and skate to relieve all this tension. All this tension is coming from these end of the year assignments that I fear I might not be able to complete. I always stress out, but end up doing good in the end. The stress is what pushes me to do such a great job. I need the stress. Without it, I will crumble down into a worthless slacker. I am starting to miss out a lot on friends and such because of doing these projects. I have not had a session ever since two Fridays ago. But, this will all be over soon, and it will be summer. I will finally be able to hang out and play with my friends for hours without having to worry about school or grades for at least another two months.

I plan to put this summer to good use. Last summer, my friends and I had progressed our skateboarding by a lot. One of them started landing 360 flips, the other got dolphin flips, and I finally got stylish pop shuvits every try, landing them on the bolts of the skateboard ("proper form"). It is a shame that I am taking a break from skateboarding because I had just landed two kickflips of mild height, on the bolts (proper form), within a month. I was so happy because I only landed one a year ago, and lost hope after that, until now. I can finally feel the trick within my grasp. I want to be able to do them consistently.

What makes me even happier, is that I did the better looking and feeling kickflip under pressure. It happened two or three weeks ago. I was with a couple of friends at one of their houses. His house is pretty cool because he has a long driveway and his parents allow him to build many "skate-able" objects. One of them we were using a lot. It was a nine of ten foot long movable manual pad that was approximately mid shin height. Some of us were playing a game of L.I.N.E. This is some sort of complex game that we heard of on the Berrics. Well, I was losing, and my friend set the trick by doing a kickflip and after that manualed the ten foot pad. I was pissed at the time because I knew that I did not have kickflips. I had proper rotation, catch, and height (knee high sometimes), but my front foot just never stayed on. I watched my other friends go and do their attempts, but none of them were able to copy, so they received their letters. Then, it was finally my turn, I did my first try, did not get the proper flick, so the board spun wrong and I did not land it. The second time was the charm. I caught and landed it. I looked back at my friends and they were screaming with joy, but I remembered that I had to keep going and do the manual pad. I thought that I was not, going to make it, but I told myself that I will not let anything get in the way of this moment. So I ollied lifted up the front end of the board bracing myself for the back wheel impact. I felt total concentration flow throughout my body. And finally, just as briefly as it had started, the manual was over, and I was rolling away, back to my friends to celebrate my accomplishment.

Quick Write: Rules of Love

1. The rules and ways of behavior of young men and women includes certain activities that they do together as a couple. They generally go on dates, eat together (romantic dinners), talk together, and watch movies together. As long as they know that they are having fun together, then that means the relationship is going in the right direction.

2. "Nice girls" and "nice guys" tend to follow certain rules such as having fun with their partner and being loyal. Loyalty is the key to a great relationship. They must never cheat on their partner or flirt with other people. Entering numerous relationships at a time is another bad thing, and especially using your partner to only benefit yourself.

3. Consequences of breaking these rules are harsh, yet reasonable. A violation could cause the relationship to weaken, or even fall apart altogether. The relationship may become "on and off," or a break-up will inevitably occur. There is no point in being in a relationship if your partner is not committed and is probably "looking around" while he or she says that they are still with you.

4. I would say that these rules come from a mixture of friends, family, and the media. Movies, the romantic sorts, currently are creating the rules of love. They are setting examples of what to and what not to do in a relationship. Also, they sometimes show how to get revenge on an ex-boyfriend or ex-girlfriend for whatever actions they have done. Family lends a role because they sometimes try to get you to date people of a certain age or ethnicity. Friends try to curb our taste in our interest of people. They, like parents, approve of who you date, but unlike parents, look more at what social group they are from at wherever you see them around at (maybe school).

Unwind Second Lit. Circle Letter

Dear reading group members,

This book is beginning to get way to good. I am starting to have trouble setting it down because of how interesting the story gets. I had to make the harsh decision of reading on last night. It was harsh because I chose to do that rather than type up this lit./reading circle letter. I know that you guys are already done reading your copies of the book, because you are two extremely fast readers, but I am starting to feel my reading skill get better too. The plot of this book makes me fear for whatever events will occur next. This causes me to create educated guesses (in which many have been prove true) and read on at a faster pace once I have focused all my concentration on the book. I get easily distracted, so thank God that this book has very dramatic scenes that pull readers in. I have read up to a point a bit past the second reading mark. I plan to finish the book some time over the weekend. And now it is time to get down to business. The quote that I choose for this week is:

"I know. I deserved it, and so it's okay, says Lev. But don't you ever git me again, or you'll regret it... Lev leaves, but Conner can't sleep. Every Unwind has a story you don't want to know. He supposes that Lev now has his" (pg. 210).

The section that this quote is sited from, is an account taken through Conner's perspective. Unfortunately, he does not know of Lev's adventure he had experienced between the time they got separated until when Lev finally arrived at the Graveyard. Conner and Risa missed out on Lev's voyage he and an older boy nick-named CyFi made to the small town of Joplin. Over in that town is where Lev witnessed a terrible scene that had forced his new transformation. Lev finally got to see the origin of an Unwinds story and in the end, helped that Unwind find some closure. The way that he talks about the parents of that child feeling victimized makes that future seem as if the only thing people care about is themselves. They do not care about the physical or mental pain these children, that were once wanted by their parents at one point (because they were not storked), go through in their lives. It is the sad truth because majority of Unwind body part receivers do not give much thought of the donor that saved their life.

Conner does not need to hear Lev's story of him and CyFi. Some people (including Conner) at the Graveyard can tell that Lev is not a force to be reckon with. His appearance is way more different than before. He no longer wears his fancy and expensive tithing whites his parents had bought for him. Hell, he hates his parents now for being able to get rid of him so easily and carry on their lives as if the thirteen years with Lev never happened. Instead, Lev now wears a puffy white jacket and a cold-hard expression on his face. And now, he has joined some sort of secret group led by a leader drawn to chaos. These very few pieces have given me the idea that Lev might possibly be a Clapper. Well, there's only one way to find out.

Sincerely,
Your reading group buddy :)

Avatar=My Hurt Locker Anticipation

This movie that James Cameron had completed was one hell of a movie. I really did enjoy watching it in theaters. I saw it some time in January, earlier this year. Around this time, tons of my friends had already seen the movie and started telling me things like, "Ooohhh, it's so great." Another one of them joked around saying, "Hey, did you know that I can speak their language." Unfortunately, because I had not yet seen the movie, I felt completely left out of the joke and conversation altogether. But, eventually, I went to see Avatar in 3-D with my dad and my brother at the local theater.

That movie was ridiculously good. I mean, it may just be Pocahontas in space (my dad seemed to figure this out by himself because we were not aware of the joke already existing), but fourteen years in the making, give James Cameron some credit for being so patient with his masterpiece. For fourteen years he eventually waited until the time was just right with all the technological advancements to be ready to await the creation of his movie. I am pretty sure that I heard somewhere that it had already beat the Titanic in the race of obtaining the most money, and had taken its place at the head of the throne among the top five movies ever made. For this I am saying, congratulations James Cameron for creating such a visually stunning movie. That is the main component that made that movie so famous. The visual effects were CRAZY good. No other movie can currently compare (and maybe for a few more years) to such artistic scenes created for the film. The acting was really good too. Highly believable, but the movie's actors and actresses did not win any awards. This movie swept the floor with all computer graphic imagery categories and maybe even a few scenery awards. But what I am trying to figure out is, how did it lose to the Hurt Locker?

I have not yet seen the Hurt Locker. My friends say that it is very good (but did not compare it to Avatar) and I heard that it was out on DVD already. I got to see this movie. I only heard about it once the Academy Awards were just a week away. I immediately searched up the trailer once it was announced as a nominee that day, and was completely drawn into the plot. The director of the film is James Cameron's ex-wife (my family found this hilarious) and she beat him for best director and won for best movie. Congratulations to her too. Kathryn Bigelow is the first female to win the Oscar for best director. All that I know right now is that the movie is that the movie won many awards and is about a man that diffuses bombs, I think in present day Iraq, and his team of soldiers that protect him on his missions. Sadly, right now, I have to wait until I can my hands on a copy and watch it. Only then I will find out in my own opinion if the movie is better than James Cameron's fourteen year creation.

San Francisco

San Francisco is a pretty darn famous place. It has become a famous tourist attraction to travel to due to its Golden Gate Bridge. People might possibly even consider it to be the “New York of the West Coast.” Not only that, but apparently the steep hills and the skate spots have made it a pretty darn popular city to skateboard in. The place is full of numerous local skate shops and many amateur and professional skaters.

My friends and I traveled over to San Francisco this weekend for a little “skate trip.” They have been doing this for a while, but it was my first time there in the city (without any parents). Now, being from a different city, we did not know too much of the rules about where to and where not to skate. It was a shame. There were so many beautiful stair sets and ledges. Some were way too big for our skill level, so we skipped them. Others, we made good time with. The major problem is that we kept getting kicked out of these public areas over and over. Even when we were leaving to go find somewhere “appropriate” to go to, we were getting yelled at by police. We were not aware of the fact that we could not skate on the sidewalks (while going from place to place). That is just stupid. We saw people bicycling way faster than we were going down the sidewalk. They might as well just make skateboarding illegal in the whole city of San Francisco. But, that would be even more stupid. Making pieces of wood with wheels on illegal. The government should go and make more efficient laws. Maybe even some that involve keeping a closer eye on drunk drivers.

The skateboarders over there are so good. They range in skill level, age, and race. Over there, we visited the local skate shop DLXSF. My brother and my friends bought some parts and clothes over there. They use their "recycling system" by purchasing used parts for only five bucks. I was surprised to find out that some of the used stuff was still in pretty good condition. We met some people that ride for (sponsored by) another local shop called FTC (For the City). They were really good. We were lucky enough to have a session with them. One of them only had a small cruiser board with large wheels and was doing tre flips on it and frontsiding up the four stair. Even though they were all amazingly good, the best part was their attitudes. The guys were so good, but were impressed and cheered for one of my friends when he did a huge kickflip on the four stair and landed it bolts. They were all very positive and loved to joke around. It made me realize what skateboarding is all about. Just to have fun and be with friends. Even though people get really good at skating, it will always be the same. Another activity that brings people and friends together to have fun.

Unwind First Lit. Circle Letter

Dear reading group members,

I know that the new form of the reading/lit. circle letters does not really encourage a letter form, and considering the fact that this is the first time that I am writing in the new format, please don't be surprised if you guys find this whole post awkward to read. This is the first letter I am writing about the new book that we picked, Unwind by Neal Shusterman. The quote that I choose to write about is:

"You Unwinds are all the same. You think that because no one loves you, then you can't love anyone. All right, then, if there's no one you love, then pick someone who needs to hear what you have to say. Say everything that's in your heart- don't hold back" (pg. 109).

I almost forgot to mention. You guys were right. I love the book. The first week of reading is nearly over and I have already finished half of the novel (it's not that impressive because I know you guys found the book so good that you have finished reading). It is something that every teenager in at least America can relate to in times of loneliness. Well, back to this fantastic quote. This is my choice because it is what Sonia says to Conner, and probably to about a hundred more Unwinds that she has taken into her safe house. Sonia has met so many Unwinds that she possibly has them all figured out. Unwinds are made up of two parts. The first half is a mystery containing the Unwind's personality and past. The other half is the fact that Unwinds feel that they are all alone in the world without any love to give or receive. This is the half that all Unwinds have in common and what Sonia sees in all of them. Sonia tells Conner and all the other Unwinds to write their own letters to someone in the world to let them know that they are not alone. But, Sonia had it all planned out. Conner learns of a second purpose of the letter after witting the letter to his parents. The importance of the letter is so that the Unwinds are not forgotten. Sonia is one of the very few people out in this ugly future that still has a respect for human life. She does not enjoy the fact that if people have problems, they just get rid of a child. So, if she is not able to save the child with the efforts of giving them food, shelter, and guiding them in the right path, she will still be able to save their story in a letter. The letter is what preserves the person even though they have vanished within the blink of an eye. The letter allows people to know the Unwind was not all that bad and most of all, they were human too.

Sincerely,
Jacobo