Book Review -- The Giver

The Giver by Lois Lowry is a young adult dystopian novel about a 12-year-old boy named Jonas who lives in a society which at first appears to be utopian, but is eventually? revealed to be dystopian as the story progresses. The story centers on Jonas, who lives in a seemingly ideal, if colorless, world of conformity and contentment. It is Not until he is given his life assignment as the Receiver of Memory that he begins to understand the dark, complex secrets on the other side, beyond? his fragile community.

For me personally I think what makes this book appealing and interesting is its twisting plots and mysterious settings. The plots in the book are all incredibly continuous and connective, such as the Ceremony of Twelve where all the adolescent children are given their permanent assignments. The Ceremony of Twelve is the last ceremony each year and is considered a rite of passage to becoming an adult. It is during this ceremony that Jonas meets the Receiver of Memory (who then becomes the giver) the first time, and later on receiving memory from the giver, the first time ever he gets to know something that has been hidden since he was born.

Many questions were raised for me as I read through the pages of the book. One question I was extremely curious about is -- why did the society in the story decide to erase all memory and multiple essential elements like x and y we have in “normal” society to construct a “utopian community”? In my desire to research this idea, I learned that according to many philosophy theories, pain is the ultimate evil. To eliminate the possibility of suffering from pain people must give up desire and individuality which lead to pain. So, the society described in the book decided to give up desire and individuality to find a “utopia” without pain.

This discovery of the impact of pain and desire was just one of the many things I have learned by reading this book. I am very confident to say that everyone will fall in love with this book the second you finish reading the first few pages.

The ending for Jonas is ambiguous. And we are left to wonder: Did he die or did he survive? All we really know is that he was probably set free, and he made a choice... was it the right one? Did it lead to happiness for him? Did it lead to happiness for the community who will now have all his/their? memories? Will they destroy themselves, or will the Giver be able to help them find true purpose and happiness in life? We don't know, because that is the way of all choices -- we can't always know the outcomes of our decisions. And there lies the danger, still I believe the risk is well worth the rewards.