I chose The Giver by Lois Lowry as my first book. Why? Mostly because it was one of the only books that the Gig Harbor library (which showcases roughly the same number of books as your average garage sale) actually had on the shelf. I was surprised to find it in the Junior section.
I opened this book having no idea what to expect. I'd heard of it, but for some reason I thought it was about the Holocaust. I think it's because there's an old man on the cover with a long beard and he looks sad -- guess that's my own personal symbol of the Holocaust.
It's not. At all. About the Holocaust.
Some stats:
- I had a really hard time accepting that Lois Lowry was a woman. I don't know why. Lois is a woman's name, but I kept getting surprised when I looked at the back flap and found a woman's picture.
- The book is very short -- 180 pages
- I read the entire book pretty much in one sitting -- causing me to stay up until around 2 AM even though I had to be up at 6:30. Beware!
- The author lives on Beacon Hill in Boston -- so she's apparently rich
- The Giver won the Newbery Medal
The story takes place in the future and is told from the point of view of 12 year-old Jonas. It's got the creepy Utopian future (but at what cost, man !!??!!) feel to it. Really, I can't say too much about the plot because it's just so cool to discover it on your own. Yeah, I know -- crappy plot summary!
LoLo's Review
Obviously I loved it, because I sacrificed sleep (which I hold as dearly to my happiness as pizza and weekends) in order to finish it. Lois is one concise little writer. You can't put it down because every single word draws you in further. Jonas has never known a society other than his own, and from his innocent perspective it seems even creepier. And I mean it -- make your skin crawl creepy with one of THE freakiest scenes I've ever read (See pages 149-150)...and in a children's book!
The end was satisfying, but a little ambiguous. If anyone reads it and wants to discuss, I'd like that.
LoLo's Rating
As this is my first rating, I'll try to set some ground rules. I'll use a 5 ampersand system. I'm going to use my favorite book, Catch-22 (funny, insightful, meaningful, brilliantly written, amazing character development) as the standard for a &&&&&. I'll use my least favorite book (that I can remember) Judith Kranz's Lovers (vapid, trendy, craptastic) as the standard for the lowest score which is &. Hopefully, as I go along I'll be able to have a little more precise measuring system -- but this is what we've got now.
So without further ado...
&&&&
Four ampersands! I would maybe have given it four and a half but I have no idea how to create a half ampersand.
To sum up -- I really did like it a lot. It was especially impressive for a kid's book as it didn't pull any punches. I'd love it if someone wanted to read it and post a comment!
That makes 38...62 to go!
Just finished The Giver last night. Took me a few nights but that's how I am.
ReplyDeleteYou are one hundred percent right about THE creepiest sceen you've maybe ever read. Even though I checked the pages for verification I didn't really need to, I knew exactly what sceen to which you were referring.
The whole time you're pretty creeped out by their world and perspective, almost a little annoyed about their choice to live the way they do. Then you get to that sceen and you are just thinking "no, oh dear lord please no".
I think the whole of the story might have a lot more depth and sybolism to it than I perceived even. When it neared the end and there were getting less and less pages I found myself reading faster to end the suspense and I had to ponder the last words for a while to make sure I was satisfied.
I was in way too. It reminded me of a Charles Bukowsi book of short stories called Tales of an Ordinary Mad Man. One of the stories in it is called 'Animal Crackers in my Soup". The end is quick, abrupt and shockingly climatic, leaving you with that same sense of bewildermand that turns into thoughts that you could really see no other way that that could have gone to your satisfaction.
I also was surprised it was a childrens book. That was a little heavy for any kid maybe under the age of 12 or 13 I'd say.
I liked the book though. Short, entertaining, unpredictable, a bit cryptic and an end that didn't dissapoint.
I need to edit the Bukowsi books title. It's Tales of Ordinary Madness.
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