There’s little in the way of emotional or character development and the whole thing is just a little too cutesy for my tastes. The story was just too simplistic for my adult tastes although I think as a child I would have loved the story. The problem is that as an adult, I felt bored. The book is probably perfect for children ages 9-12. I find it hard to rate books that are so clearly intended toward children because the elements I dislike (simplicity of plot) are elements that are needed to appeal to, or be understandable for children. Jonas learns that his utopian society exists exclusively because all emotion, color, memories, and individuality have been eradicated. The Receiver of Memory is the one person in the community who must contain all the past memories (painful and joyous) of what life was like prior to their current community. When Jonas is selected to become the new “Receiver of Memory” he has to reconcile his new knowledge of how things used to be with the current state of his surroundings. It follows the story of a young boy, Jonas, who is living in what initially appears to be a utopian society. The Giver is a young adult/children’s dystopian novel that was published in the early 1990s. I’m fully prepared for all your comments to prove me wrong about this book!

I realize that this will be an unpopular post because everyone I know loves this book with a passion.

The giver author