Neal Shusterman Unwind Themes

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Unwind is a novel about the fates of three teenagers during a dystopian future where people practice unwinding. Unwinding was created after the Heartland War, which was like a second American Civil War, except is fought over abortion. A group came together to solve the issue, and unwinding was born. Unwinding is retroactive abortion. When a child reaches age 13, their parents can send an order for them to be unwound, which is irrevocable. Unwinding is total harvesting of a child’s organs, and the law states that 99.4% of the body must be used. The parts are donated to various hospitals and organ banks, where they can be transplanted to people who need them. Unwind has several themes, among them are survival, desperation, hopelessness, and of …show more content…

He was born on November 12th, 1962, in New York, New York. He is the son of Milton and Charlotte Shusterman, and has four children. He attended the University of California in Irvine, where he majored in psychology and theatre. He has written many works for young adults, and has also written for television and film. He wrote for the original Disney Channel movie Pixel Perfect, and has also written episodes for the Goosebumps and Animorphs series. Shusterman has won many award, including a Boston Globe-Hornbook Award, for his novel The Schwa Was Here. (Neal …show more content…

When the story opens, our characters are in what might be Ohio. Our evidence for this is when later in the book, we first hear of the legend of the Akron AWOL. Another major setting is the Anti-Divisional League(ADR) safe house run by Sonia. Connor and Risa spend a month in a cramped, damp cellar, waiting for transport to the next safe house. The next setting is a warehouse near an airport, which is the last stop before AWOL unwinds are sent to the “Graveyard.” The Graveyard is an old Air Force base near Tucson, Arizona, that is now used as an airplane graveyard. “All around them, everywhere, are airplanes, but there’s no sign of an airport-just the planes, row after row, for as far as the eye can see.” The Graveyard is run by a man named”The Admiral,” who left the military because of his views on unwinding. The Graveyard is a massive safe area for unwinds, where they inhabit some of the planes parked there. Other planes are sold for scrap, which keeps the operation disguised. Unwinds usually wait here until they turn 18, then go out into the real world.