Lowry, Lois. The Giver. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1993. Print. ISBN-13: 978-0547424774. Hardcover. $13.59.
Awards
for The Giver:
- - The 1994 Newbery Medal
- - The 1996 William Allen White Award
- - American Library Association listings for "Best Book for Young Adults", "ALA Notable Children's Book", and "100 Most Frequently Challenged Books of 1990–2000."
How would you feel if a committee decided what your job would be for life? Eleven-year old Jonas lives in a highly controlled, perfect society without pain, chaos, or memories. There are, however, lots of rules enforced by a Committee of Elders, the leaders of the community. Personal freedoms are sacrificed to ensure order and avoid chaos. Adults apply for a spouse who is picked for them. All family units then apply for up to two children who arrive at age 1 after a year at the Nurturing Center. Birthmothers never see or care for their children. The physical environment is climate controlled to support agriculture. The milestones of child rearing are precisely dictated from birth to age 12. Dreams and feelings are closely monitored for adherence to the rules. The goal is “sameness” for all residents in behavior, thought, and appearance and the absence of pain, hunger, and chaos.
At the
Ceremony of Twelve, 12-year-olds learn their Assignment for life, and Jonas is
selected as the Receiver of Memory. He receives his training from a man called
the Giver, an elder in the community who holds the world’s memories and can
also experience pain and love. Only the Giver can also see the world in color
and has the memory to know the way the world used to be. But training is
painful. Will Jonas be able to endure the pain and assume his assigned role in this
utopian society? Or will the gift of memories from the Giver give Jonas new knowledge
to choose a different kind of future?
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