We had quite the disagreement in our Teen Book Club as to whether or not we should even read the book Unwind by Neal Shusterman. When the concept of unwinding was explained to the students, many of them decided that the idea was way too creepy and they didn't want to read a book about it. 

To give a brief definition, "unwinding" in this book is the process of taking a person apart to use all of his/her body parts. In the society that Shusterman has created, parents or the state can decide to have their teenagers unwound between the ages of 13 and 18. The adolescents are told that they aren't actually dying because their body parts will continue to live on in other people who need those parts.

Yes, it's a strange concept and no, I don't believe our society will embrace this procedure. And yet, it's not completely bizarre. We immediately discussed the idea of abortion and if it is better or worse for the child to be conscious of the decisions to be terminated. Is it better for kids to know that they are being unwound or should it occur before consciousness does? I must say, some of the students became very incensed about the topic and soon we were wondering when a person is a person or when the soul is created.

“I agree that we don’t have a soul until someone loves us, just like the character said in the book.”

“No, we have souls as soon as we have bodies. We have souls before we’re born.”

“How do you know?”

“If the heart beats, that person is alive and has a soul.”

"Which would make abortion wrong."

"It is wrong."

Aiieee. And that is where the conversation went. I try very hard to not direct the conversation unless it is completely off task, and I really enjoy listening to the students develop arguments, take a stance, and get into a debate, but at some point, we had to agree to disagree on this particular topic. 

The book is fantastic for triggering conversations and getting to societal issues that are relevant and real. The teenagers in book club loved the book and yet, found it unsettling. It made them think about current practices in our society, and it made them think about their own behaviors. That's why we love reading - it brings us closer to life. 

A few weeks ago, the teen book club met to discuss Charles Dickens' book Oliver Twist. Out of the twelve regular attendees of book club, only three actually tackled reading Oliver Twist,  while the other students opted to read the other book choice. When we met as a group, though, I realized how tough the book was for the students to read. Those who did read the book liked it for the following reasons: the language was lyrical and challenging, the author used caricatures and sarcasm which was expertly done, and the characters were engaging. All of these reasons seemed valid, of course, and honorable. But then the students expressed this notion:

It feels as though there is a hidden message in the text. 

I've always hated it when students develop this idea about books. It makes it seem as though only detectives, literary sleuths or English PhDs can discover the meaning of the books, making it somewhat inaccessible for the regular reader. I simply don't want my students to think that's the case. I want them to believe that they can discover the meanings in the text without needing an expert to pull it out for them. 

The problem is, Oliver Twist is very much a reflection of the time when Dickens wrote the book. Through Oliver's experiences, Dickens is criticizing government and church funding of the work houses, where those in need of monetary support would go if they wanted governmental help. How would the students know this if they didn't research the book and discover this information? Does that mean there is a secret message in the book that someone reading wouldn't discover simply through the book's pages?

I guess we are getting into literary analysis here and reader response versus historical analysis, but as the book club mentor, I would like the students to feel that their understanding of the book as is works. That it's okay to examine the book from a teen perspective with a teen's knowledge and experience, and take something from it. This isn't a secret message. There isn't hidden meaning. Perhaps there are different levels of understanding, but all levels are okay. 

Right?