Unwind by Neal Shusterman

The Heartland Wars are over. A compromise was reached between the pro-life and pro-choice crowds. Abortion is illegal, but there are still options. Parents can choose to have their 13-18 year old unwound, a process in which the child does not die, but every part is harvested for transplant. Naturally, some people have a problem with this. Namely, the kids who are going to be unwound. Kids like Connor and Risa. Connor is impulsive, always getting in fights and trouble at school. He gets suspicious when he finds three plane tickets to the Caribbean when there are four people in his family. Then he finds the unwind order. He runs away, gets caught, and causes a major traffic accident in the process of escaping. Risa grew up in a state home. Budget cuts mean that some kids have to be unwound. When she doesn't play her piano piece perfectly (she's been studying to be a classical pianist) she is told she'll be unwound. When her bus is involved in a traffic accident, she makes a break for it. Lev is a tithe. His sole purpose is to be unwound, and he's been preparing for it his whole life. "Rescued" by Connor, who then teams up with Risa, all Lev wants to do is escape and get on with his unwinding.
Part of the current crop of teen dystopias, Shusterman's tale has some truly horrifying and heartbreaking moments. The teens in this story are not placed in danger by a merciless government, but by their own parents. Told in alternating viewpoints between Connor, Risa, and Lev, the book has sympathetic characters, consistently good writing, and a quick pace. The ending is hopeful, though not happy. I would expect it to appeal to fans of other teen dystopias, as well as those looking for fiction that explores parental abandonment, rights, and responsibilities; law and morality; what it means to be alive; and self determination.

Darkness Creeping : Twenty Twisted Tales by Neal Shusterman

Darkness Creeping collects twenty previously published Neal Shusterman short stories. Each story is introduced by a brief essay explaining where the story came from. (While these introductions are by no means necessary to understand or enjoy the story, they are generally entertaining in their own right, and it's interesting to see where some of the stories came from.)
The collection begins with Catching Cold, about a boy determined to catch the ice cream truck he hears (based on an actual incident in Shusterman's life) and ends with a creepy poem. In between, good vs. evil, people get what they wish for, revenge is taken, masterpieces are created, and most things don't turn out the way people hoped. Of course, for some people, things turn out exactly as they'd hoped.
Recommended especially for teens or older tweens who enjoy creepy horror (as opposed to slasher horror). No profanity that I can recall, no sex or graphic violence.

The Talisman by Stephen King and Peter Straub; read by Frank Muller

Jack Sawyer doesn't want to save the world. He just wants to save his mom.


It’s 1981, and twelve year old Jack is living in the Alhambra Inn with his dying mother. Jack might be able to save her, and maybe someone else in the process. All he has to do is travel to an alternate world, cross the country, find the Talisman, and then… Well, Jack doesn’t know what then. He hopes he can figure it out, though, because it’s the only way to save his mom. And maybe a world or two.

This collaboration between horror heavyweights Stephen King (Carrie, It, The Shining) and Peter Straub (Ghost Story, In the Night Room) has much to recommend it to fantasy, as well as horror, fans. The quest motif is a staple of fantasy fiction, and Jack is a sort of prince in hiding. His mother is a former B movie actress referred to as the Queen of the “B”s, and his Twinner’s mother is Queen of the Territories. (The Territories is parallel world Jack can – must – travel to, and a Twinner is a person’s counterpart in the Territories.) The story runs smoothly and the characters are consistent.
The unabridged digital edition is read by Frank Muller, who reads it like a film noir voiceover. It took some getting used to, but the story is worth the effort.