Book Awards Reading Challenge

Title: The Giver
Author: Lois Lowry
Country: America
Year: 1993
Rating: A
Pages: 179 pgs.

First sentence: It was almost December, and Jonas was beginning to be frightened.

Short Summary: Jonas lives in a world where everything is perfect and under control. When Jonas is twelve, he is singled out in his community to receive special training from the Receiver of Memories. The Receiver is the only person in the whole community that holds the memories of true pleasure and pain. Now it is Jonas' turn.

Was this a challenge book? I read this book for the BookAwards Challenge. It is the 1993 winner of the Newbery Award.

What did I think? **This might contain small spoilers**
The Giver is a though-provoking book for people of all ages. It is interesting to think about what it would be like to live in a community like Jonas': never experiencing pain, to always be content, yet having no knowledge that life could be any different. A life where you have no chocie, everything is assigned to you, including your career, spouse, and children. Where there is no true concept of feelings (or colors!). I particularly like that the ending is left ambiguous. It certainly gives the reader a lot to think about.

Complete post can be found here.