The Giver | 
 enlarge | Author: Lois Lowry
Brand: INGRAM BOOK & DISTRIBUTOR
Category: Book
List Price: $6.99
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Rating:  3095 reviews
Sales Rank: 830
Media: Mass Market Paperback
Reading Level: Young Adult
Pages: 192
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 6.6 x 3.9 x 0.4
MPN: ING0440237688
ISBN: 0440237688
EAN: 9780440237686
Publication Date: September 10, 2002
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Features:
| • | CHILDRENS BOOKS & MUSIC | | • | Childrens Books | | • | Language Arts |
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Product Description
When Jonas turns 12, he is singled out to receive special training from The Giver--who alone holds memories of pain and pleasure in life. Now there can be no turning back from the truth. Paperback.
Amazon.com Review
In a world with no poverty, no crime, no sickness and no unemployment, and where every family is happy, 12-year-old Jonas is chosen to be the community's Receiver of Memories. Under the tutelage of the Elders and an old man known as the Giver, he discovers the disturbing truth about his utopian world and struggles against the weight of its hypocrisy. With echoes of Brave New World, in this 1994 Newbery Medal winner, Lowry examines the idea that people might freely choose to give up their humanity in order to create a more stable society. Gradually Jonas learns just how costly this ordered and pain-free society can be, and boldly decides he cannot pay the price.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 3090 more reviews...
 Thought-Provoking and Well-Written October 5, 2003
Christian McCallister (The waters of the Great Lakes)
241 out of 256 found this review helpful
I did not read this book until my mid-forties, but I would have enjoyed it at any age past about seven or eight.
Story: Jonas is twelve, and has grown up in a community where there is no crime, no violence, no poverty, and no misery. All of that has been methodically eliminated, in an attempt to create ultimate peace, harmony, and happiness. Everything is very well-organized and planned out. Couples are matched together based on very good reasons. Each couple has two children. The children's aggressive and sexual impulses are muted by medication. At age twelve, each child is matched with the career that best fits him or her. The Elders teach the children and train them in their careers. There is no pain; there is no misery; there is no poverty. And, there is no freedom. Freedom and individual choice and variety are the costs paid by the community for the peace, the harmony, and the . . er, happiness.
Happiness? Maybe contentment. No joy.
At twelve, Jonas is assigned his career: Receiver of Memories. He is trained by an Elder called "The Giver." And, Jonas finds out what the world could be like. He comes to understand the price that has been paid by the community, The price the community doesn't even realize it is paying, as they have all forgotten what life, freedom, and choice are all about. The Giver has not forgotten, and now, Jonas learns about that price. And, Jonas refuses to pay that price.
What will the community do to Jonas, to preserve its harmony? I will not give that away here, but think about "Brave New World" or "Logan's Run".
"The Giver" earned five stars from me on two points: technical quality and content. Technically, this book is very well-written, with a fast pace, no lulls, three-dimensional characters, a well-described setting, and no plot contradictions.
It is the story content that really elevates this book to five-star quality, however. Diversity and conformity are issues that surround us, in the news, in our neighborhoods, in our schools, in government and politics, and in the courts. The Giver puts the debate under a microscope, and it leaves room for no simplistic answers. It portrays an artificial society where diversity has just about been abolished. It depicts the benefits of that society, the shortcomings of it, and the internal conflicts caused in the mind of the protagonist. "The Giver" gives no answers, but gifts us with a wonderful way to look at an important question. This is a great book for a classroom project, or for a parent to read with his/her child. There are discussion questions listed at the end, that can be used as a launching pad for an intellectual exploration of the issues portrayed.
I think that, while written for children, many teenagers and adults will enjoy it, and find it thought-provoking. While the reading level of the book is aimed at children, the concepts are relevant to all ages.
A non-spoiler spoiler: The end is intentionally ambiguous. While I have decided, for myself, what the ending means, each reader must make his/her own decision on what happened at the end. You get to choose. What a nice gift that is.
A wonderful, thoughtful read October 23, 2001
kelly watters (Clemson,SC USA)
46 out of 48 found this review helpful
Jonas lives in a "perfect" world where war, disease, and suffering have all been eradicated. Everything is in order; everything is under control. The people have no worries or cares. The Community strives for "sameness," in which everyone and everything are the same and equal. To help the Community function as a cohesive unit, each member is assigned a position in society. When Jonas turns twelve, the Community selects him to be the new "Receiver of Memories." Only the "Giver" knows the truth and memories of the past, and now he must pass these memories on to Jonas.
The Giver is a wonderful book. Lois Lowry skillfully crafted an intriguing and profoundly thoughtful story. She subtly creates an uneasy feeling that something is wrong with this "perfect world." The Community's advisors intend to establish security within utopian society, but they really establish a stifling dystopia. To protect people from the risks of making poor or wrong decisions in life, the advisors plan and dictate the lives of the people. In effect, the citizens have no freedom of choice; they do not choose their job or even their spouse. Moreover, the advisors inhibit the people's ability to feel because they want to spare them from the hardships and pain of life. For instance, individuals must take a pill everyday, which suppresses passionate feelings. The citizens do not know or experience true emotions like love. One of the goals of the Community is to achieve "sameness" so that no one feels embarrassed or gets excluded for being different. However, this limits individuality and freedom of expression because everyone conforms to a certain desired image. Finally, to relieve the population of the horrors and devastation of the world and the past, the advisors isolate the Community from the rest of the world (also known as "Elsewhere) and give the burden of holding the memories of the past to a single member of society: the "Receiver." Therefore, the Community lives only in the present, and the people have a narrow perspective of life because they only know their community and way of life. They are naive; they do not gain knowledge or wisdom from the memories. While receiving the memories, Jonas learns a different and better way to live and realizes what he and the Community have been missing. He decides that something must be done to change the current conditions and enlighten his community.Although it is a Newbery Award Winner, The Giver is a controversial book that has been challenged and even banned. After parents complained that the violent and sexual passages were inappropriate for children, the Bonita Unified School District in California temporarily banned the novel from classes. The Giver has been challenged in other school districts around the country for its "mature themes" of euthanasia, infanticide, and suicide. I do not agree with banning and challenging of this novel. It is a great book, and part of what makes it so great is the incorporation of these controversial issues. They force readers to wrestle with their own thoughts and figure out their stance on the issues. Good literature makes readers think. Banning this book takes away the freedom of speech, the freedom to read, and the freedom to learn and explore. The banning of The Giver is ironically similar to the actions of the Community that lead the Community to its suppressive and stifling state. A powerful story, The Giver keeps readers in suspense, touches them, and stays with them for a long time. I love this book, and I encourage everyone to read it.
Suspensful Plot and Awesome Theme March 3, 2000
7th Grade Student (Grand Rapids, Michigan)
69 out of 80 found this review helpful
In a community that is all the same lives Jonas, who discovers he is very different. Jonas is the main character in the book The Giver, my favorite book. I loved The Giver because the plot was very creative, the theme was magnificent, and the setting was vivid. I think you should read this book for many reasons. The theme of this book is clearly represented: freedom, the right to make your own choices, uniqueness, and individuality are worth dying for. In Jonas's community, a commitee selects one's job, war is unheard of, all people wear the same attire, and all are assigned spouses and families. When Jonas is given the special, wonder-filled occupation of becoming the Receiver of Memory, he finds that there is much more to life. Through his task of becoming the Receiver of Memory, he discovers the meaning of love, pain, frustration, color, and cold. That is when Jonas realizes how much more there really is. Life soon becomes overwhelmingly unbearable in his world of "sameness." He finds life isn't worth living without the qualities (often that we take for granted) he discovered. That is when Jonas goes on a dangerous journey to find a land that is different. The setting in this book made it quite a pleasure. Everything in the community was predictable and pre-planned. The housing units were all the same. There were designated spots for everything. The setting helped develop the plot and theme. The mysterious ending leaves one filled with curiousity and wonder. The book, The Giver, by Lois Lowry is guaranteed enjoyment, especially for someone who likes a good theme and plot that ties in with the setting. I loved the boook The Giver, and I truly believe that everybody should read it!
The Giver February 6, 2000
60 out of 71 found this review helpful
This book is about a kid named Jonas, who lives in a controlled world, with no fear, no pain, or no war. You might think he lives in a perfect world, Right? Wrong! In the Community, there is no choices, colors, pleasure, weather,love, emotions, etc. You can not choose your job, spouse, or anything like that. In the "Ceremony of Twelve", 12 year olds are assigned a job in the Community. Jonas is singled out, and gets special training from The Giver. When Jonas becomes the "Receiver of Memory", The Giver gives him the memories of the far past; memories of pain, fear, war, pleasure, colors,and love. (This book takes place in the future) Jonas receives the truth.......This book is VERY original in it's plot, and it is interesting to see the point of view in Jonas's controlled world. I like how Lois Lowry decribes the memories that The Giver gave to him. She also well describes the way Jonas is feeling. It is a very thought-provoking book, which really makes you ponder. The ending sort of leaves you hanging though. I have read this book 3 times, and every time you read it, you understand more of this remarkable book. It just never gets dull. I read it first when I was in 4th grade,(I'm a good reader) although I would recommend it to kids 11 and up. 5 STARS!
The Giver July 23, 2002
15 out of 15 found this review helpful
This book,as distrubing as it was, was an excellent sci-fi book that, though odd, makes us all see that there is not, on the Earth we know, a place where everything is perfect as we can not know true happines or pleasure without first expiriancing pain and suffering. Jonas makes me think more, though this is a reach, more about the freedom of choice, for in the Community, there is none. The book striked as a powerful reminder that there is not a better world than that the one we live in, for there would be no happieness if it were the same as the Community, and no feelings. Without feelings, we are not human, and the people in this book scared me that some day there really may be a place that comes around here or in some other life where there are no feelings, color, or, most importantly, love. I also recommend, Harry Potter, The Lord of the Rings and The Price of Immortality
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