Mini Book Review: I am at a loss for words to express the brilliance of this work of literary art. Such a simple yet complex story that you could spend hours discussing. The story has stayed with me all day and I cannot wait to talk with my book pals about it. Also have a feeling Chapters Shawnessy will have a spike in sales on this one as I will be expressing to customers my mad love for this. Reminded me a little of Brave New World and Logans Run with the same vibe of a supposed Utopian society that seems idealistic with no prejudice or violence yet a world so horrifying to me as there is no passion, love or freedom of choice (And don't get me started about a world where people have limited access to books). Jonas is such a unique and richly developed character that you come to love and feel for. The world Lowry has created is fascinating and you can see how it could develop. Perfection in 179 pages. My 11 yr old and I are just finishing up The Boy with the Striped Pajama's and this will be our next read out loud book. I cannot wait to hear what he thinks. Oh yeah now have the song Freewill by Rush stuck in my head -- read the book you will understand. Ok peeps if you haven't read this book yet, get thee to a book store immediately and pick up a copy (or a Library if funds or shelf space is an issue) I know this review is kinda rambling but I don't want to give away anything, I truly want you to experience this book as I did. FYI I am kicking myself right now that I met Lois at BEA last year and knew nothing of this spectacular book. Lois I want to go back in time and thank you for writing this lovely book. Guess I will be picking up my copy of Son tomorrow -- sorry kids mommy might be busy tomorrow. 5+ Dewey's I purchased this from Chapters Shawnessy and did not have to review it, I just loved it so much I had to tell you all about it

To compensate for a world overcome by selfishness, crime and poverty, one society trades its freedom for totalitarianism, allowing only one person to hold the memories of the actions and emotions that nearly destroyed them. When Jonah is chosen to assume this role, he learns that their sheltered life has stolen their humanity. Great story that gives you a renewed appreciation of life.

So the begging of this book was going very slow for me and the things, I mean, it's hard to believe how the wrtitter imagined this hole story. It was just so odd. ``I took of my shirt and he put his hands on me`` Excuse me, but not the best thing to say or not the best thing to do to put this book into the section of younger children. Anyways, when the boy left the society, that`s where all the action happens, where the book just bilds up so much exitment in the reader and then POOF. The end. The hole book is just done while the action is happening. It just bilds you up and then, in the end, you are like what. the. hell. Conclusion, the ending was some-what interesting meaning, to see how an author just lets the reader make up his/hers ending.

Jonas, an eleven-almost-twelve-year-old boy lives in the Community with his father, mother, and younger sister Lily. It is a planned utopian society governed by Sameness, with no war, fear, or pain, but also no choices. The weather is perfectly controlled, no hills exist, no live animals are seen, and there is even no color or music. At age twelve, all people are assigned their roles in the community. The old, young children who do not thrive, and even those who rebel are “released.” Jonas is singled out to receive special training from the Receiver, who alone holds the memories of the true pain and pleasure of life and now becomes “the Giver,” so that Jonas can be trained as the new Receiver. Jonas’s father is a nurturer and the family has been caring for a newborn named Gabriel who is not thriving, so the decision is eventually made that the infant will be released. Now that he has received the truth, how will Jonas react when he learns what it really means to be released? And what will he do? The Giver is well-written and quite interesting to read. However, to be truthful, I really did not care for it. And I think that my reaction basically involves the issue of age-appropriateness. The book is said to be written on an age nine to eleven reading level and is usually listed as being for age twelve and above, so it was apparently aimed at middle-grade students. However, I noticed that the Random House edition which I read is found in their “Teens” section, and others have recommended it basically for upper grades. There may be some value in the book for high school students to consider the consequences of a controlled society where people give up freedom for safety. However, there are certain aspects of the story—the infanticide, the euthanasia, and some rather oblique sexual references—which I think are just too heavy and thus are not appropriate for younger readers. Also, the ending is rather odd. Whether it is happy or not I guess all depends on the eye of the beholder. Is The Giver a horrific book? Not necessarily, although it has some things horrible to contemplate in it. Is it a useful book? Perhaps, under certain circumstances. Is it a good book? Each person will have to make up his or her own mind on that question. I do agree with the assessment that it is “For mature audiences, as there is an episode of euthanasia. The story questions values we take for granted. Caution, and probably pre-reading recommended.” There are three “companion” novels--Gathering Blue, Messenger, and now Son.

I didn't fin this book all that good and it didn't really catch my attention vary well. There were some parts of the book that I found good, sad and upsetting, and just plain boring. I think that the book could have used something to help me understand more of what the main poin of the book or what the author was trying to tell me. I didn't find it that good and I think that it was more of a book about dispare and sadness then happyness. I got really confused near the end of the book and I think that the author could have explained what was going on there a little bit better. This book needed something to spaz it up a little more because Truly When I first started to read this book I didn't want to read it at all. I still didn't want to read it when I got almost to the end. It was ok and I don't think that It was really my book.

For anyone with a love for dystopian literature, this is a must read. I first read this book in middle school. It gave me chills then, and it still gives me chills. Whenever a young person asks me to recommend a book, this is the first book I list. It is a book that makes you think.

***CONTAINS SPOILERS!!*** Always on the lookout to find new reads that don’t put a dent in my pocketbook, I borrowed this book from a friend - well, from my friend’s daughters’ bookshelf. Totally unaware of what to expect, this anti-utopian science fiction novel, The Giver by Lois Lowry is a powerful book about what is thought to be a “perfect” society. Jonas is entering his Twelfth year in this society (no dates are given in the book, but it is assumed to be a fair distance in the future), the year where each child in their Twelfth year is assigned a job chosen for them by The Elders based on their strengths observed in their previous years. Jonas’s friends are assigned normal jobs – Director of Recreation and Caretaker of the Old – but Jonas had been chosen for something different, The Receiver of Memory. The community is unlike anything we know today. It has reverted to “Sameness” – the concept of colour is unknown by anyone, everyone wears the same “uniforms”, and for each year of a childs’ life it is expected that they will get a certain item (such as a bicycle when one enters their Ninth Year, or a coat with buttons in the front when they enter their Fourth Year). The people of the community do not know love or happiness, nor do they know anything of pain or suffering. Rather than inflict these feelings on the entire society, it is the Receiver of Memory’s job to keep these memories for when situations come up where the society needs to be advised on how to take care of the situation. Similar to George Orwell’s 1984, there are speaker systems throughout the community which are used as surveillance (such as keep uneaten food – something Jonas does with an apple he and his friend Asher had been playing with) or for announcements. Life is planned out for everyone and no one is capable of choice. A person in the society can apply for a spouse (who would be picked by the Elders) and then that couple can apply for children, but only a boy and a girl for each couple. It is the job of the Birthmothers to give birth to the children, but if the new children do not meet the qualifications of the community, they are “released” instead of being able to enter society. The book is very powerful. At first it was very similar to George Orwell’s 1984 or M. Night Shyamalan’s movie, The Village. As I read on, it blew my mind how crazy this society was. I felt sorry for Jonas and the burden he would have to carry being the Receiver of Memory (ultimately carrying the memories of pain, sadness, loss, torture, etc. on his shoulders), and when he asked his “parents” if they love him (their response being that that was an absurd question seeing as they do not know of love). I would recommend anyone who’s interested in books about dystopia to read this. Lowry’s writing is very straightforward and easy to follow, though the subject can be hard to handle at times (especially when one learns what it means to be released). However, it is a great book to teach people to be grateful for what they have and to show them how nice it is that we all ARE different – seeing as in this community birthdays aren’t singled out for people, nor are they encouraged to be different. For a book so simply written, The Giver has so much depth that I think it stands up to other books of the genre. It is well-crafted and is sure to make an impact on any reader.

My friend got me to read this book. And honestly, it was torture reading it at first. I was so confused and it's like, "What is this?!" But my friend assured me that it got better and so I kept reading. It got a lot better after everything started to fall into place. It was an interesting book that I think many would enjoy so if you liked it, I| would suggest reading the other 2 in the series. The next one doesn't exactly relate to this book, but it's just as good!

A wonderful story that examines how our life could be and why we need to appreciate both the good and bad in our lives.

I love dystopian stories. There is just something intriguing, and often scary, about seeing how society "could be" if some event happened or if they took it into their own hands to change the way life "should be". The Giver by Lois Lowry is one of the better dystopian stories I have read in terms of fleshing out the society and their rules, regulations and behaviors. This story really makes you think. Would the world be a better place if things such as violence and lust were completely removed from life by a society who changes and controls things for the betterment of their people? Where people must apply for spouses that are not chosen by them, and only then are able to apply for children that are not created by them. Where members are placed together to form a loving family unit with the maximum of one mother, one father, one male child and one female child. Where children only live at home until they have progressed through their growth years and are chosen foe their life's work by the society's council. I have to admit...the idea has some merits to it. I often stopped to weigh the pros versus the cons while reading this book. Would I miss the things they took away from their society to trade in for all the good they have achieved. It was a very difficult assessment for me to make at times. I was constantly shocked and sometimes even appalled at how far they insisted on going. Many of the rules were not stated outright, but if you read between the lines enough you can understand what they are implying. I don't want to give any of it away because some of the revelations came closer to the end, but it was all so wonderfully done. The author didn't slap you in the face with a list of rules, they just let them sneak up on you and tackle you from behind. The writing style was perfect. The story flowed by so fast I was disappointed when it was over. Of course part of that was due to the way it ended. If you have been following my blog long enough you know of my hatred for cliffhanger endings. It makes me want to tear my hair out and beat small children (not really...but you get the picture). Almost everything had been running so smoothly up until the last few pages. Considering there really isn't a sequel it would have been nice if the author could have tied up the loose ends a little tighter...but they didn't. That's always disappointing...at least to me. Some other minor points of contention were over some of the things we learn later that the society has changed. Up to about the middle of the book most changes and rules make some sense, and they seem completely realistic and I could see a scared society (or a controlling one) putting these new rules into motion. But some of the things we find out they have changed, or controlled, later in the story are so hard to believe it took me completely out of the story. It was such a shame. Every summer I make my son read at least 2 novels of my choosing and then he has to write a report on them for my review. This year I have chosen this as the second of the 2 books. Mockingbird was his first one. He is reading that one currently. I was tempted to give this book a 4.5 rating. But I don't do partial ratings. You know why? Have you ever seen half a spider? Ok...I'm sure you have...but I bet it wasn't pretty...and I don't want no ugly half spiders lurking on my blog ok?