Reviewed by Olivia
Rating: High Four
Who I'd Recommend to: Fans of Jerry Spinelli's books, as well as unique ideas for our futuristic Earth
Fav Quote: (coming soon)
Summary (from Amazon):
The Giver, the 1994 Newbery Medal winner, has become one of the most influential novels of our time. 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.
Rating: High Four
Who I'd Recommend to: Fans of Jerry Spinelli's books, as well as unique ideas for our futuristic Earth
Fav Quote: (coming soon)
Summary (from Amazon):
The Giver, the 1994 Newbery Medal winner, has become one of the most influential novels of our time. 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.
My Thoughts: I've finally decided to review this book. I read it first six months ago, and since then, have reread it three times. Since my most recent reread, I've also read Son, the last book in the series, and told myself that I had to review this or I probably would never do it.
The thing about The Giver is that my opinion on it has changed every time I read it. When I first read it, I rated it only two stars. The story, though meaningful, was a little too plain and short for my liking - I felt like it didn't meet my expectations. However, after reading the second book, Gathering Blue, which I LOVED, I felt I should reread this book just in case I had missed something. With my lowered expectations, I found a new appreciation and love for this book, and bumped my rating up to five stars. Having said this, The Giver is hard to review, because, like I said, you see something new in the story every time.
Personally, I liked the character of Jonas. He's a strong, thoughtful main character for a powerful, thought-provoking series. The concept of this book is very fascinating - I have to applaud Lowry for this, I never thought I would read a dystopia with such an outgoing, terrifyingly realistic future for our world. The whole Releasing thing (actually, spoiler alert, killing) kept me on the edge of my seat, and, like every book in the Giver Quartet, I shed a few tears. Because the thing I've really realized about this series is that it really is a metaphor, in every way possible, of our world. I won't elaborate, all I'll say is that I would definitely give this book a try - and that I agree with the first sentence of the summary: "The Giver, the 1994 Newbery Medal winner, has become one of the most INFLUENTIAL novels of our time." (Oh, and the word haunting, and in the last book, chilling.)
The thing about The Giver is that my opinion on it has changed every time I read it. When I first read it, I rated it only two stars. The story, though meaningful, was a little too plain and short for my liking - I felt like it didn't meet my expectations. However, after reading the second book, Gathering Blue, which I LOVED, I felt I should reread this book just in case I had missed something. With my lowered expectations, I found a new appreciation and love for this book, and bumped my rating up to five stars. Having said this, The Giver is hard to review, because, like I said, you see something new in the story every time.
Personally, I liked the character of Jonas. He's a strong, thoughtful main character for a powerful, thought-provoking series. The concept of this book is very fascinating - I have to applaud Lowry for this, I never thought I would read a dystopia with such an outgoing, terrifyingly realistic future for our world. The whole Releasing thing (actually, spoiler alert, killing) kept me on the edge of my seat, and, like every book in the Giver Quartet, I shed a few tears. Because the thing I've really realized about this series is that it really is a metaphor, in every way possible, of our world. I won't elaborate, all I'll say is that I would definitely give this book a try - and that I agree with the first sentence of the summary: "The Giver, the 1994 Newbery Medal winner, has become one of the most INFLUENTIAL novels of our time." (Oh, and the word haunting, and in the last book, chilling.)
