The Giver
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Hardcover - USA - 1st edition. |
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The Giver is a young adult novel written by Lois Lowry and published in 1993. It is the first book in the series and is one of the most frequently challenged books in America. In 2014, it was adapted into a movie.
Personal
| Own? | No. |
|---|---|
| Read? | Audiobook read by Patrick Lawlor. |
| Finished | 2024-04-04. |
I remember seeing this book prominently featured in book stores and again later when it was made into a movie, but I didn't have enough interest to read it. After seeing it was one of the more frequently challenged books, and that it was also written by a female author, I became more inclined to read it.
Review
Good
- Like with other dystopian novels, Lowry does a good job of showing how taking "safety" and "equality" to extremes can lead to an extremely sterile undesirable world.
- The reveal that the strangeness Jonas was seeing was color was very interesting.
- For as much damage as the new Receiver could do, they don't try very hard to control them.
Bad
- I think a lot of the biological aspects of humans couldn't so easily be overcome, mothers gladly giving up their newborn children for example, even with drugs or genetic manipulation. Biology is far more messy than that, and even small changes almost always cause unwanted side effects.
- I would have liked some explanation for how the Receiver and Giver are able to transfer memories, or how memories that aren't in them return to society for others to experience. All of that seemed like a magical aspect.
- Since the society doesn't have any war or violent crime, and haven't for countless generations, it doesn't make sense for children to play "war." They wouldn't know what a rifle is, let alone that it shoots and kills people, and they certainly wouldn't understand terms like "ambush" or "line of fire." Such a controlling society would certainly be inclined to prohibit pretend violence if children's play. The scenario was necessary to let Jonas reflect on real war, but perhaps a way more consistent could have been thought up.
Ugly
Representation
| Strong female character? | Unknown | There are several women. |
|---|---|---|
| Bechdel test? | Pass | Jonas's mother and sister talk to each other multiple times. |
| Strong person of color character? | Unknown | |
| Queer character? | Unknown |
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