Review Detail

Reader reviewed by Josh Yeung

When I looked at the pile of books that lay ahead of me, I selected The Giver by Lois Lowry published by Bantam Books for Young Readers. Lois Lowry was born in 1937 in Honolulu, Hawaii. Her elderly father lost his memory and that inspired her to write The Giver. The Giver is a book for young teens which is portrayed in a realistic future world.
Jonas turns twelve and gets selected to become the new receiver. After many discoveries and understandings with an old man (the Giver as we come to know) gives him, Jonas makes a decision that will affect not only his life, but the life of his whole community. This book showed how the Jonas changed from a carefree obedient kid into a strong courageous young man. The theme of this book was revelation and understanding. The authors message was when one learns the truth about the Earth and his/her lifestyle; he/she will dare to do things that they thought impossible. I learned this from the actions that Jonas portrayed in the story when he found that his living style and life had been all planned out. That then resulted in him doing something that he never thought before. I thought that Lois Lowry did a great job describing the themes and the setting of the book. Each of the characters had interesting traits and personalities that the she progressed and enhanced. The details in this work of fiction were very detailed which brought me, as a reader into the exciting events of the protagonist.
I really enjoyed this piece of writing from the author. Everything fell into place and I thought that the plot and outcome were amazing! This work of fiction is one of the best books Ive read in a long time. Most books Ive read recently have been fairly boring and have not drawn me into the story as The Giver has.
Lois Lowry made an excellent novel with a theme that presented itself throughout the book. Using Jonas, she reveled the meaning of understanding and revelation to readers such as myself. I recommend this book to all readers looking for an adventure. This novel was extraordinary!