This dystopian novel by the Swedish author Ninni Holmqvist imagines a society in which women older than fifty and men older than sixty years, those who are childless and work in unprofitable industries, are being sent into a community of “not needed” citizens called “The Unit”. All residents of the Unit are given lavish apartments surrounded by beautiful gardens and free access to various amenities: they are being fed gourmet meals, they attend parties, massages and saunas. It seems like an idyllic place, but there’s a catch: residents – the “not needed” – must participate in medical experiments and donate their organs to “the needed”, one by one, until the final donation. When Dorrit Weger arrives to the Unit, she is resigned to her date. But one fateful encounter with a fellow “not needed” writer will change everything.
This is a novel about coming to terms with life and unexpected love, about pain and compassion, but also society’s cruelty disguised as care for its citizens, all following the laws of “democracy” and capital. Ninni Holmqvist’s language is simple, occasionally poetic, occasionally clinically precise and factful while she depicts splendour, automatism and the cruelty of that, not-so-unlikely world. At the same time frightening and moving novel, echoing numerous works of dystopian fiction, The Unit posits important questions about value and meaning of human lives. A book which cannot not provoke discussion.
„“I liked The Unit very much... The Unit… I know you will be riveted, as I was.”
MARGARET ATWOOD
„Like Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale,this novel imagines a chilling dystopia: single, childless, midlife women are considered dispensable.”
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Ninni Holmqvist was born in Lund and now lives in Skåne, Sweden. She has penned three short story collections and two novels. She grabbed the attention of the literary world with her novel “The Unit”, published in 2006. This dystopian novel has been translated into a number of languages, and the English translation, first published in 2009, has been reprinted several times. The novel has caught the attention of critics and audiences, and has been subjected to many analyses in academic journals due to its topic. In addition to writing, Holmqvist is a translator and creative writing coach. 
