Hey everyone! It’s hard to believe that this is my 60th TTT post! It doesn’t seem like all that long ago that I was doing my first TTT post, but that was over a year ago now. This week’s prompt was Ten Reasons Why I Love X, which could be absolutely anything. On the one hand this is cool, because I can pick absolutely anything to fill the gap. But on the other hand, there are so many topics to pick from and I don’t want to do something that everyone else is going to do! I figured I could do reasons why I love fantasy or why I love Percy Jackson or Harry Potter or Skulduggery Pleasant or The Hunger Games but I gush about them all the time. So instead, I’ve decided to talk about the ten reasons I love the Unwind Dystology, which yes I know I also talk about a lot, but it’s a series I love and not many people talk about it, so I wanted to share a bit of the love today!
- The concept
The concept of a futuristic society where unwanted children are unwound as a result of a compromise between pro-life and pro-choicers after a big war over abortion, is very interesting and incredibly unique, I can honestly say I’ve never read anything else like it.
2. The humour
It’s a very dark series, so I like that it also has a healthy dollop of humour, but it’s the right kind of humour, sarcasm, wit, dark humour, humour that fits well with the series, rather than out of place goofy humour.
3. The use of real media articles related to the book
I love that he uses articles from the real media about organ transplants and the real life airplane graveyard etc, it makes the books seem so much real and really adds another dimension to the series. I actually loved the role in general that media played in this book, not just the real media articles, but the advertisements of Proactive Citizenry and Hayden’s radio broadcasts, they were tied in really well.
4. The characters
I love all of the main characters in this book and they go through such great development through the books. The Connor from the first book is unrecognizable from the Connor in the last book, same with Lev and even Risa goes through character development, though maybe not as noticeable as Connor and Lev. They are all brilliant characters though and I loved every single one of them. The side characters are equally brilliant as the main characters and just as well developed, they could all have their own individual stories that I would be interested in reading! They’re complex and interesting and flawed and realistic and I love it!
5. Multiple character narration
The books are narrated in third person present tense and from the POVs of multiple characters which gives the story a much wider scope than it would otherwise have and you get to view the world from multiple different angles and get to see the main characters through different eyes which I really liked, plus it works really well for the story because the characters aren’t always in the same place at the same time, so you get to see what all of the characters are up to. Plus it helps you understand the characters so much more than if you just had one or two main narrators.
6. The romance
Connor and Risa’s romance is really well done, it’s a slow burn romance, they don’t meet and instantly fall in love, their romance is developed through the course of the four books and it’s done in a really subtle way, that doesn’t overshadow the main plot of the book. There’s a bit of a love triangle in there when Cam is introduced, which I have to admit, I wasn’t thrilled about, but it’s resolved well and I liked the way that their story was ended.
7. It explores really important topics
These books explore such important and deep topics, such as life, death, what it means to be a person (through the character of Cam), organ transplants, organ trafficking, abortion, religion, free will etc. Any adult who thinks that YA books are just for teenager should read this series, because there is such thoughtful treatment of deep issues that they would definitely change their minds!
8. The writing
Bar the occasional spelling and grammar mistakes (which are very occasional and really an editing problem rather than a writing problem), the writing in these books is very powerful and it really makes you feel and there are certain scenes (not mentioning anything in particular for spoilery reasons) that stick with you long after you read.
9. It makes you think
I love books that make me think and these books really did make me think. I suppose this really kind of goes with #7, but I wanted to include it as a separate point, because I think it’s really important. These books made me think about issues that sure I had considered before, but never really thought deeply about and I loved that. I also love that these books and the ideas in them have stayed with me long after I’ve read it.
10. It’s not biased towards one side or the other of the abortion debate
The debate which is central to this series, the issue of pro-life, pro-choice is an important one and one that a lot of people have a lot of opinions on. What I loved most about this series is that Neal Shusterman doesn’t come down hard on one side or the other of the debate, he lets his readers decide and it’s one of the many reasons that I think this series works so well.
I’m going to keep it to ten this week, though I could definitely come up with more reasons why I love this incredible series (and why you should all go out and read it ASAP) but I’ll stop myself before I go too crazy! What was your choice to fill in the gap left by X today? Any fellow Unwind Dystology lovers out there? Let me know in the comments! Next week’s topic is Top Ten Most Anticipated Releases For The Second Half of The Year, but that’s next week, in the meantime, I will have a new Wishlist Wednesday post for you guys tomorrow.
What a neat way to do the topic! 🙂
My TTT: http://www.anovelglimpse.com/2016/06/07/top-ten-tuesday-ten-reasons-i-love-my-kindle-paperwhite/
Thank you! I’ll check yours out.
Sounds like an interesting series. I’ll have to check it out. 🙂
You definitely should 🙂
I’ve never heard of this series before! It does seem interesting, however books told from multiple POV’s turn me off.
It’s really great, you should give it a try! Multiple POV can be really good if it’s done well.
Yeah, I’ve tried with so many different books.
Thank you for sharing your love for this series!
No problem!
This series has been on my TBR for a while but I still have not read it yet. Time to get on that 🙂
Yup definitely time to get on that. You won’t regret it 🙂
I so agree about those news articles scattered throughout, it took me a second to realize they weren’t real. Though I will say that I thought he had erred on the pro-life side just because of the way the tithes were portrayed. But he certainly seemed to advocate for supporting people no matter what their belief. In terms of the people that donated organs to causes they believed in.
And like any Neal Shusterman novel it really makes you think and addresses big issues like that without preaching to you.
Yeah they were awesome. Potentially yes, but what I really meant is that it didn’t seem preachy in any way. I haven’t read any of his other books yet, but I can’t wait to!
ahhh yes, that is for sure. I think he’s amazing at getting messages across without ever being preachy. You should! They’re so good, I have a goal to read all of his at some point
I have the same goal! I have Challenger Deep to read and I’ve preordered his new one and will try to get to his back catalogue as soon as possible.
Whoa. How have I never even heard of this series?! I just added it to my TBR list. It sounds SO interesting. Great TTT post.
It is amazing! Glad that you’ve added it to your TBR. Thank you!
The premise of this series sounds really unique. I’ll have to check it out sometime.
You definitely should 🙂
Congrats on your 60th TTT!!! I haven’t read the Unwind series but your reasons for loving it make it sound fascinating.
Thank you! It is, you should definitely try it!
I’ve only read the first in series which I loved – it’s something I definitely need to catch up with.
Lynn 😀
You definitely should 🙂
This was a great post! I’ve never heard of this series but after reading this I’m very intrigued into it! I’ll have to check it out!
Thank you! It is really great, you definitely should 🙂
I love when people talk about books that aren’t ALWAYS talked about. I haven’t read this series yet, but I’ve wanted to for a LONG time. I like that you said it has articles in the book. I love stuff like that!! Great list 🙂
Thanks! That’s what I wanted to try to do with this post, it would have been easy for me to talk about one of my other favourite series, but I wanted to do something that everyone else wouldn’t be talking about today! Yeah, that was one of my favourite things about it.
Congrats on your 60th TTT post. I have a bit before I am there. Lol! I haven’t heard of that series, but I do love a good romance story. Thank you for stopping by. 🙂
Thanks! Ah you’ll get there before you know it. It’s a great series, you should try it 🙂
I bought this series on a whim from Book Outlet earlier this year and now I need to go read them! Great list 🙂
Thanks! Hope you enjoy them 🙂
I will be honest, I have never heard of the Unwind Dystology. Sounds interesting! Thanks for the post and congrats on 60 TTT’s! Thats amazing!
It’s really great, you should definitely try it! No problem! Thanks a lot, yeah almost can’t believe I’ve done that many!
Great topic! I read Unwind a couple years ago, and I just found out recently that there is another book. I’m gonna have to re-read Unwind so I can read the sequel.
Thanks! There’s actually 3 other books, so you have a lot to look forward to after you reread the first book!
I haven’t read Unwind yet, but I’ve bought the later books in the series and will get around to them eventually – this post has given me some really great reasons to do that!
Glad to have given you some good reasons to read this series! Hope you enjoy it 🙂
I haven’t heard of the series, but your list has me intrigued! It looks like it is well written and interesting.
It really is! You should check it out 🙂
I haven’t read Unwind yet but this list definitely makes me want to! Dark humour is something I’m ambivalent about, so it’s good to hear that it’s well-used in this book… and character development is always a plus. 🙂
You definitely should! Yeah it is, the humour is good because it balances some of the creepier aspects of the book! Yup it always is 🙂
Ooh, I’ve heard of the series before and it’s on my TBR! Somehow I never got around to reading it. This list makes me want to pick it up though! ❤
You definitely should, it’s great 🙂
I have the first two in this series. I need to read them already! Great list!
You definitely should! Thanks!
It’s awesome that you found a series that you love so much! If I had gone in the direction, I probably would have talked about Jennifer L. Armentrout’s books. Great list!
I think so too! I’ve never read any of her books, but I do know a lot of people who like her as an author. Thanks!
This series is one that I need to begin! Great post!
Thanks for visiting my blog earlier. 🙂
You definitely should! Thanks! No problem.
Sometimes I don’t like multi-character narration and sometimes it just really works. It’s so much easier to get to know characters when the story is told from their perspective. Great list!
When it’s done well it can be really good I think (and for this series it was definitely the best choice) but it can be a bit hit or miss sometimes. Thanks!
You’ve definitely piqued my interest in this series! I love multiple POV books and I would definitely appreciate that while it deals with some heavy themes it balances with some humor. And all the other reasons you list as well. Great job sharing your love of this series!
Thanks! Glad to see that I have made you interested in this series.
I like #7 when books are deep (and entertaining also) and I agree- there’s a lot of good YA out there and people shouldn’t assume it’s shallow or not tackling serious issues.
Me too! I know right. I swear half the people who say that’s it’s shallow or not tackling serious issues haven’t read much of it or any at all because there is lots of YA that tackles serious issues.
I never heard about this series before, but all of these reasons make me want to check it out 🙂 That was such a great way to do the Top Ten this week! 🙂
That’s great, that was my intention with this list! Thanks 🙂
Very interesting! I haven’t read this series but now I want to. It sounds really intriguing! Alba in Bookland
That’s great! Hope you enjoy it if you read it 🙂
This series is epic. I hear the movie is coming along and should be released in the next couple of years. Great list.
Yes it is! I know, I’m so excited for it. Thanks!
I’ve never heard of this series before, but I definitely want to check it out now! Great list!
That’s great! My intention with this list was to bring more people’s attention to this great series! Thank you!
This was a great pick because I’ve never heard of this series until now but it does seem interesting so I’m headed over to goodreads now to add it. Thanks for picking it and bringing it to my radar!
Thanks! That’s great, that was my intention with this list to bring more people’s attention to this great series. Hope you enjoy it when you get to it.
mEEEEEE I’M A FAN! Okay actually I probably don’t get to claim “fan” status because I only read the first book and I LOVED it and gave it 5-stars but I was so traumatised I never read anymore. XD #Fail I do want to re-read Unwind though and then finish the series. It’s on my to-do list for this year. ;D Plus I found Unwind for like 50cents at a library sale so THE UNIVERSE WANTS ME TO RE-READ AND CONTINUE! YAY. I also love love love present tense/3rd person, so that sold me. And also the premise. It’s so creepy omg.
Thanks for stopping by @ Paper Fury!
Sounds like my friend, I gave her the first book and she really enjoyed it but she was too creeped out to read anymore (and she didn’t even read the really creepy part!). Sounds like the universe definitely wants you to reread and continue! Hope you enjoy the rest of the series, I’m sure you will, it’s amazing!
Interesting post! I never read this series, but it looks like a great one, according to your post 🙂
It really is! You should give it a try 🙂
I keep seeing this in my library but I never get around to picking it up! Gotta move this higher up my massive TBR list now 😀
You definitely should 🙂
This is NOT something I would have ever looked at to seriously consider reading, if not for having read your posting! Then I saw that several of my Goodreads friends really liked it, too. I admit to being fascinated by the topics included! Thank you for stopping by Smoke & Mirrors and leaving your link! 🙂
Glad to have helped you find something new to read! No problem.
Great reasons! 🙂 I can understand why you love the dystology so much!
Thanks! Yeah, it’s a great series 🙂
I’ve never read this series, but you make it sound really interesting!
It really is! You should try it 🙂
Thanks for stopping by my TTT post: http://books.thetechchef.net/top-ten-tuesday-2/
Unwind is actually sitting in my TBR pile and was in my TTT post last week: http://books.thetechchef.net/top-ten-tuesday-1/. I’m even more interested in reading it now.
No problem! Hope you enjoy reading it 🙂
Sixty! That is a great milestone. I am not sure how many I have participated in, but I don’t think it’s that much yet. I’m not at all familiar with the Unwind Dystology, but you have piqued my interest. I will have to look for this! Thank you for sharing!
Thank you! It goes faster than you think, feels like it wasn’t that long ago that I did my first one! It’s a really great series, glad to have brought your attention to it. Hope you enjoy! No problem.
#6 – I have only read the first one, but I do love a slow romance. I love interaction and depth beyond just “s/he’s so hot”
My TTT list
Me too! Connor and Risa’s relationship definitely goes beyond just s/he’s so hot.
Sounds really interesting. 🙂
It is 🙂
I’ve honestly never heard of this series before (or maybe I have and don’t recall.) However, after reading your reasons for why you like it, I might have to check it out. Great topic! Thanks for stopping by my blog last week!
Kristine @ The Writer’s Inkwell
You definitely should! Thanks 🙂
Ah! This series has been on my TBR FOREVER, and I might have to pick it up really soon thanks to your post! I’m really excited for it, especially since I’ve heard from a LOT of people that it’s unique and dark and lovely. Thanks for the post!!
You definitely should, it’s really good! I hope you enjoy it as much as I did 🙂 No problem!
I LOVE SKULDUGGERY PLEASANT TOO. AH, it’s so amazing! Have you read Demon Road?
Also, Unwind sounds really good! I love slow-burn romances and I love books that make me think 🙂
It is amazing! You should definitely give it a try 🙂
I know right! Glad to have someone to share the love with! Yes I have, and Desolation too actually!