The Giver (Lois Lowry)

Title: The Giver

Series: The Giver Quartet

Author: Lois Lowry

Released: 1993

Rating: 5/6

Basic Plot: The haunting story centers on twelve-year-old Jonas, who lives in a seemingly ideal, if colorless, world of conformity and contentment. Not until he is given his life assignment as the Receiver of Memory does he begin to understand the dark, complex secrets behind his fragile community.
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Black and White
This book has a lot of things going for it that make it a deep experience. One of the things is the symbolism. The majority of the characters (minus The Giver, Jonas, and Rosemary) can't see colors. Seeing black and white symbolizes the fact that the dystopian society is deprived of feelings. Well...they do feel but not in the way you or I do. So they don't really feel. There is basically only following the rules and disobeying them.

To Be Released
Those who are familiar with the twist in Logan's Run can easily guess what "Release" really means in the world of The Giver. The scene where you find out is just...yeah...I...yeah...don't want to give spoilers but that is one messed up scene. The society in The Giver is one of 'sameness' so if something is different they just kill the person. Also twins aren't allowed apparently. Rosemary's release is beyond heartbreaking.

Sameness
A big reason I adore dystopian novels is because you see the fears of the day. The Giver is about the problem of fitting in and not causing waves. If we really want to be the same, then important things will go away. We won't know pain but we also won't know pleasure either. Children are beaten for speech impediments in the book because that's different. People don't even comment on differences because that's considered very rude. The life in the novel is way too structured to be healthy and that's coming from someone who needs their day planned out and is confused by change.

Final Thoughts
I read this in school and I decided to re-read it because of the movie. Plus I wanted to see what I thought of it now. Some scenes I can't believe I forgot because...yeah...just...disturbing. I don't like the Sameness as individuals provide their own unique mark on the world and that shouldn't be stopped with everyone being the same. It is a very short read but you should read it. I'm reading the whole Quartet so expect reviews of the sequels in the near future.


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