In Unwind, Neil Shusterman began a brilliantly disturbing look at a culture in which parents can have teenage children “unwound” – a
process which kills tham as every part of their physical body is separated and given to
someone else. Perhaps because this cruelty is so counter-intuitive, the
government floods society with manipulative slogans (“Experience a world outside yourself: Embrace
the divided state.”)
As if the story weren't disturbing enough, Shusterman connects the issues with some current trends in the world. He cites current news stories about children abandoned under Safe Haven laws, exorbitant organ
prices on the global market, and surgeons who profit by harvesting organs from euthenized
patients. It's not the same as unwinding, clearly, but seeing the real world juxtaposed with his fictional world is sobering.
Shusterman introduced some weighty concepts in Unwind:
Do we have souls? Do people have intrinsic worth? What makes human life
valuable? Fortunately, UnWholly continues with the same skill and depth
offered in Unwind.
