Reviews tagging 'Religious bigotry'

Unwind by Neal Shusterman

10 reviews

wannaseeafrog's review against another edition

adventurous dark reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

This book was impossible to put down, and the development of the characters and the world-building immediately draws you in. It’s the kind of book that forces you to think about the morals and ethics of the world that surrounds us. While some of the character development seemed unrealistic at times, this book does take place in a futuristic and dystopian society with challenges that we can’t understand.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion, Child death, Death, and Medical trauma

Moderate: Car accident, War, Suicide, Sexual harassment, Religious bigotry, Police brutality, and Panic attacks/disorders

Minor: Bullying, Classism, Domestic abuse, and Death of parent

besotted's review against another edition

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Child abuse, and Medical content

Moderate: Forced institutionalization, Violence, Kidnapping, Abortion, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Police brutality, Religious bigotry, Suicidal thoughts, Gore, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Torture, and Confinement

dark_marble_eyes's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

I've seen this book as recommended reading for young adults/teens quite a lot, and I can see some merit in it. The main problem with this book is that it doesn't overtly take a stance, yet is promoted as a "conversation starter" on the subject/concept of abortion, the could-be alternatives, and the people on "either side" of the argument. It is purposefully written in such a way that somehow both anti-legal abortion and pro-legal abortion people regularly point to this book as a "see here! this is arguing my point!"
However, it comes across to me as a work written by someone who is either not invested in the issue or only invested in the way that it's a profitably inflammatory subject.

I cannot speak to the original intentions for the book and its sequels, but the opinion I personally have formed after reading the book, some interviews of the author, and the reactions of others, is that it lacks integrity of belief. I do believe that books written with intentional ambiguity can be helpful and valuable -just not this one.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical content, Suicide, Child death, and Medical trauma

Moderate: Body horror, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Medical content, Murder, Mass/school shootings, Religious bigotry, Ableism, Death, Abortion, Pregnancy, Police brutality, and Suicide

Minor: War

in relation to my tag on mass/school shootings- I do not remember there being specific mention of school shootings themselves, but there are people called "clappers" who are essentially suicide bombers in this universe who will go to schools or public areas and clap, activating [nitroglycerin?] in their bloodstream causing combustion and explosion.

oliverreeds's review against another edition

dark hopeful tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Child abuse, Child death, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Body horror, Car accident, Confinement, Death, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Abortion, Blood, Mass/school shootings, Murder, Religious bigotry, and Violence

kshertz's review against another edition

adventurous emotional inspiring reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

I am obsessed with Neil schusterman currently. His books make you think, his dystopia is entirely plausible and this is no exception. The concept of not allowing for abortions was hard to hear especially right now. The bill of life and storking so painful because they were not at all hard to comprehend. To see that children might then become disposable for parts, scary but still possible. I could not put this book down and see it for the warning it is. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion, Abandonment, Body horror, Gore, Child abuse, Death, Murder, Blood, Child death, Medical trauma, Medical content, Pregnancy, Religious bigotry, and Violence

_morgan's review against another edition

adventurous dark sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Forced institutionalization, Suicide, Violence, Child death, Murder, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Confinement and Abandonment

Minor: Grief, Gun violence, Abortion, Medical content, Sexual harassment, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, and Fire/Fire injury

scarlettskyes's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Blood, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Murder, Sexual harassment, Suicide attempt, Trafficking, Medical content, Forced institutionalization, and Child abuse

Moderate: Abandonment, Child abuse, Slavery, and Religious bigotry

bookcaptivated's review against another edition

dark hopeful mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Blood, Body horror, Bullying, Death, Injury/Injury detail, and Medical trauma

Moderate: Violence, Religious bigotry, and Kidnapping

Minor: Abortion, Mass/school shootings, and Pregnancy

exclipse's review against another edition

dark medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

The characters are absolutely terrible- the main character is an edgy Gary Stu, and his female companion is a Mary Sue with no personality, the third protagonist, Lev, has a personality, I like bratty characters so I liked him at first…but his story painted religious people as evil killers, and there were no other religious characters to counterpart this portrayal. Books can and should show the good AND BAD of groups, but only showing the bad, like Unwind does with religion is hateful. Almost the entire cast is white, except a very stereotypical southern black boy who is only in one or two chapters. A sexual assault almost happens <to the main characters girlfriend, and he doesn’t intervene to prove a point.> it all just left a bad taste in my mouth.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Violence, Murder, and Religious bigotry

Minor: Sexual assault

alouette's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense fast-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Car accident, Child death, Death, Violence, and Medical content

Moderate: Bullying, Confinement, and Sexual assault

Minor: Abortion and Religious bigotry