Book Review: The Giver by Lois Lowry
Jul. 16th, 2014 10:59 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
juushikaTitle: The Giver (The Giver Quartet Book 1)
Author: Lois Lowry
Published: Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1993
Rating: 3 of 5
Page Count: 192
Total Page Count: 146,991
Text Number: 433
Read Because: prompted by Mari Ness's reread on Tor.com, from my personal collection
Review: In a rigidly-ordered, peaceful society, one boy is selected for a career that defies social rules. A brief, sparse, info-dumping, concept-laden, memorable book—I was surprised by how well I remembered The Giver, having read it last as a teenager. The world is memorable, but the way the text reveals it is moreso: even in reread, the truth behind the apple and the released twin have tension and impact. But the book is more interesting than it is good; it's short and leaves threads dangling (there are sequels, but I haven't read them), and the entire book—cast and worldbuilding included—is simplistic and heavy-handed, however good the intentions. I'm not surprised to want more from The Giver—refinement, development, the knowledge of how Jonas changes his community and how this effects the wider world—but I am surprised by The Giver's level of artistry: what is done well leaves a lasting mark.
Author: Lois Lowry
Published: Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1993
Rating: 3 of 5
Page Count: 192
Total Page Count: 146,991
Text Number: 433
Read Because: prompted by Mari Ness's reread on Tor.com, from my personal collection
Review: In a rigidly-ordered, peaceful society, one boy is selected for a career that defies social rules. A brief, sparse, info-dumping, concept-laden, memorable book—I was surprised by how well I remembered The Giver, having read it last as a teenager. The world is memorable, but the way the text reveals it is moreso: even in reread, the truth behind the apple and the released twin have tension and impact. But the book is more interesting than it is good; it's short and leaves threads dangling (there are sequels, but I haven't read them), and the entire book—cast and worldbuilding included—is simplistic and heavy-handed, however good the intentions. I'm not surprised to want more from The Giver—refinement, development, the knowledge of how Jonas changes his community and how this effects the wider world—but I am surprised by The Giver's level of artistry: what is done well leaves a lasting mark.
