The Giver

The Giver by Lois Lowry is one of those book titles that you hear everywhere. I myself read it in junior high but couldn't exactly remember what it was about. I remember that it wasn't my favorite book, I tended to stick to girlier books back then. After rereading this book, I truly understand why this book is so talked about. I had remembered that Jonas is given a special role but that was about it. I didn't remember so much of the other aspects of this book. I also found myself truly horrified when I learned what being released meant. I was surprised that I had such a strong reaction to this book, years after I had read it for the first time. After I read it, in one sitting, I wanted to go online and look up discussion guides because I found it just that interesting. I know that if I taught older kids, this book would be a great one to discuss themes and parallels with real life. This book kept me interested from the first page on. I could not put it down. However, I would probably think before I gave this book to a kid of a younger age than junior high because the themes can be rather adult. But I understand why this is required reading for many students and I'm glad that I got to read it a second time to fully appreciate it.