The Giver by Lois Lowry

Lowry, Lois. The Giver. New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1993. Print. ISBN 978-0-395-64566-6. Hardcover. $17.00 USD. 

Awards/Honors:
-1994 Newbery Medal
-1994 Regina Medal
-1996 William Allen White Award
-A Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor Book
-School Library Journal Best Book of the Year

Annotation:

Jonas knows that he is different. Being different can be a good thing, or a bad thing. Either way, nothing could prepare Jonas for what the Giver has to offer.

Booktalk:

Can you imagine not knowing what pain felt like? Or not knowing what it felt like to hate or be scared of something? How about not seeing any color, a world filled with grays and blacks and whites. When you were a kid and your teachers asked you what you wanted to be when you grew up, what did you tell them? This is the type of society that eleven-year-old Jonas lives in and it’s the only life he has ever known. He doesn’t have the feelings we do and his teachers never asked what he wanted to be when he grew up. In Jonas’ society, the children had no career choices; instead they were assigned their future on their twelfth birthday (The Ceremony of Twelve) and Jonas could not wait to find out what his future held for him.

Jonas knew he was different from the other children, he could see colors flash in front of him and he has other special powers that nobody else has. Due to these remarkable abilities, Jonas is assigned the Receiver of Memory and is to learn everything he needs to know from The Giver. The Giver is an elderly man who helps Jonas learn how to utilize his talents and receive information that may not be what Jonas was prepared to deal with. Will Jonas enjoy his future assignment? With the information the Giver has, will this push Jonas away or make him love his community even more? Overall, Jonas has to remain happy, considerate, and obedient because those who rebel are “released.” 

Interview with Lois Lowry on The Giver:

Kates Book Club- book review:

Lois Lowry's Official Page