Antsy Does Time Book Review

ANTSY DOES TIME by Neil Shusterman 1. Antsy does Time, like Unwind, has a death theme. Unlike the characters of Unwind where they are being put to death, Antsy Does Time explores the prospect of death. From the beginning where there is the accidental death of the balloon handler, to the near death of Antsy’s father from a heart attack and the “prospective” death of Gunnar the reader highlights the different reaction of each case. 2. Antsy is my favorite character as he seems very mature for his age and is a loyal friend. He is very connected to his family and tried to do something important for a person he thought was dying. 3. The main conflict in the story is that Antsy’s friend Gunnar has a terminal illness and is expected to die within 6 months and Antsy does not know how to deal with it emotionally. 4. The conflict is resolved by Antsy doing something meaningful for his friend which begins with him donating a month of his life to Gunnar. 5. The time period of the novel is present day as everything that is described is the same as it would happen today. For example, the Thanksgiving parade, school, and the way friends and family are portrayed. 6. The novel does not have a dystopian society as Unwind. The family unit, behavior and attitudes are the same as we have in the present day and come across very realistic. The characters in this book could be someone you are at school with or even your next door neighbors. 7. The climax of the story is when Antsy has found out Gunnar is not going to die but has gained so much support for Gunnar that he is due to give his speech in front of all the people at school. Then, his father has a heart attack and he is faced with the real prospect of death. 8. My favorite scene is when Antsy and Lexie take Old Man Crawley to Prospect Park and they go on the Zip Line. 9. The genre of the story is “realistic fiction” which means that the story itself is not true but in real life it could