October 22, 2012

Recommend A... Book That Kept Me Up All Night

Recommend A...is a new weekly feature hosted by Chick Loves Lit, where bloggers recommend a book based on a specific prompt.
 
This week's prompt is to recommend a book that kept me up all night. Now, I'm actually very good at not staying up all night reading. Working and having real-world responsibilities will do that to you. However, the last book that I actually did read into the late hours of the night and then stayed awake thinking about the story and it's implications was:

Unwind by Neal Schusterman
Unwind trilogy, #1

My recommendation for this book is not quite a positive one. On a weekend night I was starting to get close to the end and SO MUCH was happening that I realized I couldn't possibly put it down. And then that one scene happened. Sleep after that was impossible. I still feel disturbed just thinking about that scene. Anyone who has read the book should understand exactly what I'm referring to.

I appreciated the fact that Unwind does ask some huge moral questions. The book's premise is that the conflicting views on abortion caused a war, and the war's resolution was that pregnant women can no longer abort unwanted children, however they can choose to retroactively "abort" their children as teenagers. This is declared legal because those teens who are "aborted" or unwound have all their body parts still alive and in use...just in other peoples' bodies. The story itself follows three teens who have been sentenced to unwinding but for various reasons are resistant to their fates. Sounds creepy, right? And disturbing and horrifying and I honestly have no idea why I thought it would be a good idea to read this book. It was a really thought-provoking book, of course, but I just don't think it was worth the emotional trauma that I endured from the experience of reading it.

Please tell me I'm not the only one who feels scarred from reading this book. It's not that I am firmly against reading late into the night (on weekend nights), but I'd prefer that it be for something that I really enjoy. And preferably full of butterflies and rainbows and glitter. That sort of thing. Link me up to the books that have kept you up at night (for good reasons)!
author image

Amanda

Amanda loves few things better than sitting down with a cup of tea and a book. She frequently stays up far too late, telling herself she just needs to finish one more page. When she's not wrapped up in the stories of others, Amanda works as a children's librarian in a public library.

2 comments:

  1. You are not the only one who is scarred from reading this book:) That said, I REALLY enjoyed this book, once I had a some time away from it. It IS a very creepy book, and a very thought provoking book. And yes, THAT scene. I don't think I have EVER read anything like that. But I think Shusterman wrote this book with every intention of getting that EXACT response. I think he wanted to get under your skin.

    I've never reviewed Unwind. It's one of THOSE books that I just sit to down to write about and...nothing. There is so much to say, but where to begin? Anyway, having read this a couple of years back I can say that it's definitely one of the most powerful books I have ever read and that I will never forget.

    (And yes, I definitely want to read the sequel, Unwholly, as soon as I can summon the courage to do it but I will probably never be able to see the film should it ever be made:)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh definitely. I just don't think my skin was thick enough to handle that scene. I still get creeped out thinking about it, and I'm not one who likes being scared/horrified/traumatized by books haha. I did write a review of it but it's only on goodreads. It was a difficult book to review, you're right. I had ALL the emotions and not many words to describe what an experience it was reading that book.
      I'll have to see your thoughts on Unwholly. I'm interested in how the story continues, just can't make myself read it.
      Also: a movie would be the most TERRIFYING thing ever. I hope it never happens.

      Delete

Thank you for taking the time to comment! I strive to make my blog the very best it can possibly be and I appreciate each and every comment on here.