The Giver
Review by Pragya Bhayana
By Lois Lowry
179 pages
You'll be on the edge of your seat to find out what Jonas will do next!
Summary
Jonas, a twelve, is selected to be the receiver of memory. He receives memories of happiness, love, sadness, and pain from the Giver. Jonas has never experienced any of these feelings because in his community, everything is colorless, the same and no one has feelings. After realizing what the people of their community are missing, they decide to change their community. Jonas and the Giver plan for Jonas to escape at midnight. He writes a letter to his parents and his younger sister, Lily telling them not to worry because he is gone. Jonas takes food, his father's bike, and Gabriel (a baby who is about to be released) on his journey. They ride for days using memories of courage to help them keep going. Finally, after a couple of days, Jonas and Gabriel reach to a snowy hill with a sled and start riding down.
Individuality is important; it makes us who we are
The book The Giver shows how the Giver and Jonas are different from everyone else. They are individuals, but everyone else is the exact same. Right now I am 11 years old and I like cheese, soccer, and the color blue. Right now my sister is 17 years old and she likes sleeping, classic rock music, and the color green. Liking pop music makes me different from my sister and maybe many other people. Liking soccer and the color blue makes me who I am. If everyone was the same no one would be very interesting. For example, I like pop music and that makes me who I am because if everyone liked pop music there would be nothing different and no new experiences. This book made me realize that I should respect other peoples’ personalities and what they like and not everyone should like what I like. I also realized that our individuality is what makes the world so diverse.