Having “known” (through the transmittal of memories) love, hate, war, betrayal, death, and emotions of all sorts, the repercussions of a rebellion by Jonas are huge.ĭiscussion: This winner of the 1994 Newbery Medal raises so many questions about feelings, relationships, society, and government that it is hard to imagine a better teaching tool. He decides that he wants a choice about what kind of life to live. In the process of being infused with memories of life before “sameness” by the previous Receiver (now called the Giver), Jonas is horrified by the lie of their “perfect” world. And most importantly, without love.Īll this is destined to change after Jonas, a precocious eleven-year-old, is given the assignment of Receiver of Memory at the career ceremony. And without colors, or animals, or pain, or anger, or even death. These lives are orchestrated, however, without any music. (Hormonal “stirrings” that might predispose people to make decisions based on love or lust are strictly controlled by a universally administered suppressant at puberty.) At age twelve, all children are given their future career assignments, and they begin, after school, to prepare for their orchestrated lives. Children are produced by breeders and then assigned to parents who have been carefully matched to each other on the basis of fit.

It does the same trick Harry Potter does, however- it is sure to make kids want to read more.In the “perfect” world of The Giver, a variety of rules and practices enforce “sameness,” emotional suppression, and strictly directed lives. It’s just that I wish I’d read it without the cynicism and need for verisimilitude of adulthood.

There is no room for teenage rebellion in the community, no mention of how different the communities are or what the kids are learning in school (if they can’t see color and, we have to assume, can’t learn history) but of course, this is not a book about that.ĭon’t get me wrong- The Giver is a fantastic book, and a great workout for the grey matter. While in Orwell’s 1984 people are kept in line using fear, there is no incentive in The Giver for people not to be curious, and it annoyed me. Now, at the ripe old age of 36, I read it and loved it despite a few glaring plot holes, the biggest of which, of course, is that while people may suffer from a lack of memory, there is nothing to explain their lack of emotion or empathy. I’m sure if I’d read it at that age it would have been one of my favorite books. Well, I just finished Lois Lowry’s The Giver, and I just wish I could give this to my 13-year-old self. Do you sometimes read a book and when you’re done you think, “you know, I would have really loved this book ten years ago”?

In the book the giver