by Louis Lowry
When I was in 6th grade, I had to read this book as part of a reading
assignment. I was "forced" to read it. I really didn’t remember the full story.

Recently, I was talking about the book, "The Giver", with a friend of mine who
needed to re-read it for a college course. I dusted it off, and decided to
re-read it myself. What an unexpected treat!

The Giver is about a boy named Jonas who lives in a community in the future. In
this community most people don’t make choices; only a few elected officials make
choices. This committee of elected officials chooses everything for everybody,
from their job to their name. They choose EVERYTHING. In the beginning of the
book Jonas is an eleven, which means he is eleven years old. When children
become twelve they are assigned jobs, but when Jonas becomes a twelve, he isn’t
assigned a job, he is selected to be the new "receiver". The receiver is the
person who receives memories from the past. These are the memories of true pain
and of true pleasure. The man who gives Jonas the memories likes to be called
the Giver. After awhile, Jonas and the Giver make a plan to give the people the
memories, but it’s very risky. I do not want to give away the unexpected ending.

I am glad that I read this book as an adult. I learned from this book now, much
more then I did originally, and I truly enjoyed it. It is a quick, easy read,
that will definitely leave you changed for the better. A younger person might
just see this book as a short story set in a futuristic or strange land, about a
young boy who receives a very important job. But as I
read the book now, I can see so many more "layers" to this story. I think it can
teach you how important the good experiences, as well as the bad experiences are
in our lives and how we can learn and grow from both. I also think it can show
you the ramifications of letting others make choices for you.

I think this was an insightful book because it gives an excellent idea of what
life without choices would be like. This is important because the ability to
make choices is something we usually take for granted. I love how Lois Lowry
slowly reveals things about this world throughout the book. At first it looks
like nothing is different, but slowly you start learning
about this community. This is a great book that has won many awards, and I hope
I have convinced you to read it.