The County Library discussion

The winner of the October book club poll is Unwind by Neal Shusterman! This is one of my favorite books by one of my favorite authors, who will be speaking at the Sandy Library on October 6th at 7:00 p.m.

Unwind is a great choice for Teen Read Week, because it's a good example of everything a good teen book can be- it's gripping, thought-provoking, and chocked full of action. It's also great for October because it's very creepy. If I remember correctly, there was a point while I was reading it when I was so disturbed that I actually threw it across the room- always the sign of a great book! If you've already read it, please get the conversation started. If not, head to the library!

Also, I noticed on the poll that several of you did write-in votes for The Hunger Games. Well, you're in luck! We choose Hunger Games for our book discussion several months ago. If you go to the Discussions link on the main group page, you can see all the past books, and you are welcome to add comments to any of them.

I am extending this book discussion into November, in case any of you are still reading and want to participate. Also, I notice that the reading challenges are way more popular than the book discussion, although a lot of people vote for the discussion picks. Any suggestions of how we can improve the book discussion? Would prizes help?

Christy wrote: "Jennifer wrote: "I am extending this book discussion into November, in case any of you are still reading and want to participate. Also, I notice that the reading challenges are way more popular th..."

I'm so jealous- both of getting to see Shusterman and of reading Unwind for the first time. Hope you love it!

Christy wrote: "Jennifer wrote: "Christy wrote: "Jennifer wrote: "I am extending this book discussion into November, in case any of you are still reading and want to participate. Also, I notice that the reading c..."

Well, even if you don't finish by the end of November, post and let us know what you think of it. The thread will be open indefinitely.

O.K I have a question. What was the most disturbing aspect of this book to you? Several people have mentioned being upset at different parts of it.

For me it was just the whole organ-harvesting thing. I've read other books with similar themes, like Never Let Me Go and The House of the Scorpion, which are also excellent books, but this one just hit me as particularly creepy. And the seen where the kids is actually being unwound- I barely made it through that.

I guess for me it was that the whole society seemed to accept this as O.K. People like Pastor Dan who obviously went along with it until he had to face it and told Lev to run. Can we be fooled into thinking that the unthinkable is good?

Suzanne wrote: "I guess for me it was that the whole society seemed to accept this as O.K. People like Pastor Dan who obviously went along with it until he had to face it and told Lev to run. Can we be fooled into..."

I would say yes, and often. I mean, look at the food industry in America today. It's like a dystopian sci fi story. Or the places where women don't have any rights. Or even that story on the news the other day about the forced-sterilization projects in South Carolina and other states. I do think it's a bit far-fetched that we would ever think organ-harvesting unwanted teens was a good idea, but then I see something that sounds just about as crazy and I wonder.

Jennifer wrote: "Any suggestions of how we can improve the book discussion? Would prizes help?"

I belong to a YA reading group on here and they get pretty good discussions going. The discussion leaders are pretty active in getting things rolling. I think the best way to get that is to ask questions to stimulate the discussions.

I love this book. It's one of my favorite dystopias. It's disturbing and thought provoking without being gory or pushy. The most disturbing part for me was surprisingly not the unwinding but the orchestra on the rooftop, so reminiscent of the Holocaust.

I came to see Shusterman last month too. I love getting inside into how books came to be.