The Giver

I'm a life-long fan of dystopian fiction, and The Giver is a fine entry in the genre. Lowry's writing is clear and direct. Every word and scene seems to be present in service of the Story, and I appreciate that. The story itself is small-scale dystopia, about a community containing maybe a few thousand people. (There are precisely fifty children of any given age.) So, this novel feels like it's more a critique of cults than of society as a whole. I liked it very much.

We are living a life of shadows, of echoes.

I have such a complicated relationship to this book that I don't believe a star rating is even meaningful in my case. I read The Giver three times as a child and read the Spanish translation as an adult. I recall being in the fifth grade and devouring Lowry's novel in a single night, immediately recognizing it as my then-favorite book. I owe a lot to The Giver, especially my appreciation for books that speculate about future societies. While some aspects of the story now seem illogical (or conversely, too easily predictable), the book's emotional beats hit even harder now that I have a bit more experience with life. However, with an adult perspective, I can also retrospectively identify certain ways that the book actually harmed me as a child. Without getting into too much personal detail, if my child were to read this book, I would make sure to have a discussion about the differences between psychiatric drugs in the book and in real life. I would also make it clear that the existence of joy doesn't justify suffering, nor does it invalidate a society's attempts to alleviate that suffering. I don't think that Lowry necessarily intended to send harmful messages on either of these topics, but at the end of the day, this is a children's book, and the way it impacts children is important to consider.

A flawed but tremendously impactful work that changed me, both for better and for worse.

Podia haber sido bueno pero tiene demasiados defectos.

El concepto de la sociedad esta bien, un poco simple y tipico pero es un libro para jovenes, quiza es mejor algo asi simple. Es un libro corto y consigue describir bastante en este tiempo.

Lo malo, la otra gran idea aqui, la de “the giver” no tiene ni pies ni cabeza. Es tan incomprensible que hasta el personaje a cargo no tiene ni idea.

En general parece todo de plastico, muy artificial, como si se hubiera escrito al reves. El autor sabia lo que queria decir y para decirlo ha terjiversado toda logica.

5/5
i still can't believe i went my whole adolescence without reading this book, and boy am i glad i finally did. a beautiful book about life & how love makes it all worth it.

I'm not in the YA age range this book was meant for, but I can't imagine giving this didactic book to my YA-aged daughter for entertainment or a challenge. The obvious freedom and individuality vs. comfort and safety argument that Lowry makes leaves you no room for complex thought.

I believe that 12-18 year olds can find something better. An older middle-schooler/high schooler is going to see right through this very quickly. In high school, our class read Brave New World, which has similar ideas and then some and is a much more interesting and entertaining book. In other words, kids can handle a lot more than The Giver has to offer.

The most interesting concept is the Giver himself, but this story doesn't strike me as being (as described) about memory. The Giver is a (not at all subtle) device to show the terrors and wonders that this society gave up for their secure life.

Certainly, it kept me reading because first, it's incredibly easy and didn't waste much of time and second, as the world was revealed, there is a compulsion to see how bad it really is. By the time the Giver's purpose is revealed and the main character makes some kind of choice for himself, the book is basically over. Just when it seems it should be getting started.

For such a simple story it really does pack a lot of ideas in and raises some really interesting ideas. I loved reading it and was totally absorbed but I felt the ending dipped slightly so it just missed out on 5 stars

One of the best books I've ever read. I would've finished it all in one day if I didn't start so late the day before. Lowry makes a fantastic dramatization of what we would be like with communism (although exaggerated). The ending annoyed me cuz you're left on one hell of a cliffhanger, she apparently has made a whole series of which I will promptly be reading to find out what happened.

I had the opportunity to reread this classic YA dystopian novel for a book club, and I was struck by how good it is and how well it's held up over time. Without getting into too many spoilers, The Giver asks what society might be like if everyone was the same, and peace and order were prioritized over everything else. In our increasingly divided world, it is difficult not to see The Giver as a chilling warning of how the world might be if we ever lost our diversity, our freedom, and our feelings.

The narrative itself is very solid. I did feel that time began to accelerate in the mid-teen chapters and at times the author seemed to gloss over elements of Jonas' training and life for the sake over moving on with the story. This isn't a fault exactly, it just felt a little too easy and somewhat diminished the mystery and the tension for me. I also thought the rules of the world were a bit unclear and too convenient. Lois Lowry didn't exactly explain how transmitting memories was possible, or why memories would return to the community as a whole if the Receiver was lost. Since this differs significantly from how memory works in the real world, I think it would have merited more explanation. Perhaps since this is a YA novel the author felt she could play fast and loose with reality, or perhaps she will reveal more in one of the other books in The Giver Quartet? I don't remember being bothered by the mechanics of memory when I read the book for the first time as a child, but still, this is arguably a problem with the book. There is a sci-fi or fantasy element present in a world that otherwise seems to be our future, and the failure to account for this device challenged my suspension of disbelief just a bit.

The Giver is the first book of a four book series, which is something I didn't know until recently. I've eagerly ordered the next three books. I hope to learn more about Jonas and Gabe, as well as the Giver and the community. I would rate this book 4.5, rounded up to 5. Well worth a read, or a reread.

It was good and kept me interested. Did not like the way it ended.

I've read this book before, and decided to reread it after recommending it to my niece. Its a gem of a book, with different insight on each reread..

Years later, the abrupt suspended in mid-air ending still bothers me. Knowing there's three more books in the series helps make sense of it (to a point...sigh...I've read a few reviews), but I've yet to read those.

I listened to the audiobook this time around and enjoyed it. Ron Rifkin's reading was even keeled and at times fun. (honestly, his name appearing as the narrator in the library description was what made me hit the borrow button as scrolled through available audiobooks at my library) Maybe I'll go that route with the next one in the series.

Wow. I don't know how I've missed this book in the past. It's a fantastic read, but the end felt so abrupt to me. I'm not sure if that was intended as a setup for the series or if the idea for the series came after.

Archiving the memories of a society that has decided real human experience is too dangerous is an interesting concept. I understand this is a book for younger folks but I would have liked to see the premise unpacked a bit more.

The idea that it's possible to ramp down or suppress human nature and still maintain the sophisticated interactions necessary for a society to survive is not a given. It's unlikely that depth of experience can be managed on a simple linear scale.

However our continuing singular reliance on rule of law does suggest that we haven't stopped trying.

YA dystopia/post-apocalyptic was the genre that got me into reading when I was younger, and with this being dubbed as the OG dystopia (first published in 1993) novel, I just had to read it. I also watched the movie adaptation a few years ago and liked it, and more recently, a university classmate who I had a crush on mentioned that this was his favourite book, so obviously I am going to read it.

I found that it did not feel like a YA book at all, it read more kid-ish, and this might be because of the standardised language the citizens of the Community are required to use. Everything is standardised, which gave a technical feel to the world. Sameness, they called it. Sameness was the ideal, Sameness meant everything is perfect.

The main character, Jonas, is likeable and easy to empathise with. I think that if I had come to the novel cold, I would have been just as frustrated as Jonah was, trying to make sense of all that he is finding out about this seemingly flawless world. But of course, we know that it isn't perfect at all. It raises interesting questions- whether having potentially disruptive knowledge and information purposefully hidden is ethical or not, is it better to have limited choices to ensure stability, and oh, how would you feel if your big, life decisions, like what your career and who your spouse and children would be, were mandated by a system and the government?

The book ended on a hopeful note, a cliffhanger which I felt was a perfect segway into the next novel in the series. I have not gotten my hands on it yet, but because this was a good read, I intend to do so.

Lois Lowry is a monster.

I'd never even heard of this book until a friend mentioned it on Facebook as an example of dystopian fiction, but apparently all of my friends have and they loved it. I did not enjoy reading this book because it's horrifying and painful,, but it's a good book and a very quick read.

It's the story of a boy who is born into a society of near-perfect equality, but is assigned the role of “Receiver” for his community. And in training for his life's work, he starts to understand all sorts of horrible things about life there.

Dunia utopia, dimana segalanya sdh diatur oleh komite, siapa pasangan hidupmu, siapa anak2mu, brp anak2mu, dimana kau akan bekerja, kapan kau akan mendapatkan sepeda, dll.
Awalnya segala keteraturan itu kelihatan indah, betapa semua sdh diatur, bahkan kata2 yg kau ucapkan, perasaan, juga diatur. Namun begitu kita diperkenalkan oleh sang pemberi yg meneruskan ingata2 masa lalu, semua mulai hancur berkeping2...

So, I know The Giver has been out for a long time, and I know they made a movie, but somehow I'd never read or watched it. But on the recommendation of a friend, I finally have. What a strange little book! It definitely belongs in the same realm as Brave New World, Fahrenheit 451, 1984, and The Handmaid's Tale – which are among my favorite books – but the ending was tremendously unsatisfying. It's the first book in a quartet, though, so I'm hoping the other three, which I have requested from the library, will tie up the loose ends. It definitely feels like it's only the first installment of a story.

The dystopian society in this book has effectively banished most feelings. But to get rid of hate and war and prejudice, they also had to banish the memories and feelings of individuality and difference. With everyone and everything the same, they're mostly incapable of feeling true love or happiness. So they all live in peace – but it's a complacent, uncaring peace. It's not peace because of love, it's peace because of the absence of passionate feelings. Whether this is good or not, well, that's up to the reader to decide for themselves. The actions of the main character, who aims to disrupt that peace, could be seen as good or bad.

I'm not actually entirely sure how I feel about this book. I will probably have a better opinion once I read the next three – Gathering Blue (2000), Messenger (2004), and Son (2012).

Edit: I have now read the other three, and I'm still a bit at a loss. These were...odd.

You can find all my reviews at Goddess in the Stacks.

I loved the book but the ending made me take one star off - I guess I wanted a bit more

Rating:4 ⭐Summary:Jonas lives in a community in which the people have little to no choice–they are assigned their spouse, their family, dwelling, and job. This may keep order and peace, however, is it worth it? Jonas is selected to become the community's Receiver-of-Memories, a highly honored position in the community. Jonas begins to receive instruction from the current Receiver, who he calls the Giver, and with it, comes the memories of the far distant past. Jonas realizes wonderful things–colors, warmth, love, family–have been taken from humanity for the sake of Sameness and peace. He also experiences memories of horrible loneliness, loss, war, and tragedy. Is the removal of such horrible memories worth the peace and safety that come from putting all of the memories and horrible feelings onto one person?Review:A very quick read that provokes many different thoughts. Is human existence worth the tragedy that comes with it? It reminds me of a lot of the points brought up in [b:The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas 92625 The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas Ursula K. Le Guin https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1389866872l/92625.SX50.jpg 89324]. Is one person's suffering worth the safety and peace for the rest of the community? As a kid when I read this, I really did not enjoy the ending. I wanted to know what happened with Jonas and with the Giver. However, I do find it a stronger ending by not knowing. We can look to the past and make our best judgment, but the future is unknown and may not work out like we had thought. A great read. one that I will read again in my life. I do wonder how the community got to this point and what happened and more about the giver, but it's good.

Fascinating story and fascinating world... Despite a cliff-hanger ending, everything is beautifully written and the characters so well developed that I wanted to read on and on. Thankfully three more books to follow!

I have read this book 3 times since January. Making a grand total of 5 times! Needless to say, I love this book!

This book caught my attention and held it from the first page. I was drawn into the world...right into, not just skating on the top of it, but into it. I was sad when it was over. I wanted desperately to know what happened to Jonas and Gabe. I still do! Someone please tell me there is more of their story in the next 3 books...

A todos los libros que leo les doy 5 estrellas pero es porque en su momento me llegan de distintas maneras, y con todos me siento bien, me siento parte de ese mundo. Y este libro no fue la excepción, me ENCANTÓ me gustó muchísimo la evolución del personaje, se me hizo un tanto difícil imaginarlo como un niño de 12 años, pero los héroes vienen en todo tamaño ¿no? Definitivamente no puedo esperar para leer los siguientes.