The Unwanteds By: Lisa McMann

     The Unwanteds by Lisa McMann is a fascinating book. Although it appears to be a simplistic fantasy novel on the surface, The Unwanteds has many complex underlying themes. The primary issues of The Unwanteds include sibling rivalry, and then the much darker theme of killing the weak for the survival of the strong. The first of these themes, sibling rivalry, comes into play at the beginning of the book when you find out that Alex, the main character, is to be executed, and in turn separated from his brother. Although this is terrible, Alex's brother, Aaron does not show any sympathy for Alex's situation. In fact, you find out later in the book that Aaron was the one who reported Alex in hopes of having him executed. In addition to that the head of their society has a twin who rebelled against her by harboring the Unwanteds, people sent to be executed, and giving them new purpose. Eventually there is a war between the two communities leading to the brothers fighting, and one of the twins ultimately dying. The second theme in this book is a dark, and sadistic take on the survival of the fittest. Every year the community that Alex was exiled from has a purge; in the purge all Unwanteds at the age of thirteen are sentenced to death for showing creativity, a trait that is looked down upon by the citizens of their community. The purged are sent to their graves at the infamous Death Farm to be executed, but in a twist of fate all the purged are saved by Marcus Today, a mysterious man who is later revealed to be the twin of Quill's leader, the society from which Alex is exiled, Justine. When this is found out, Quill, wages war on the saved Unwanteds because they are scared of an uprising that could take away all the power of Quill, and it’s power hungry leadership at the hands of Justine. Overall the Unwanteds is a very meaningful book with themes that make you rethink the way the world works. Similarly to The Hunger Games, The Unwanteds has the reader at the edge of their seat cheering for the victory of the mistreated underdogs. Also like The Hunger Games this book is about a dystopian society with very few individuals in places of power, and the very difficult situations they put their people in. Finally, The Unwanteds shows that even during sibling rivalries, and the looming fear of being killed, you can still defeat the most powerful of enemies.