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The Giver: A Newbery Award Buy new: $8.48

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In Lois Lowry’s Newbery Medal–winning classic, twelve-year-old Jonas
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The life where nothing was ever

Two children—one male, one female—to The children all
unexpected. Or inconvenient. Or
each family unit. It was written very at Nine; they we
unusual. The life without color, pain, or
clearly in the rules. bicycles
past.

Highlighted by 7,034 Kindle readers Highlighted by 6,529 Kindle readers Highlighted by 5,965 Kindle

From the Publisher

The Giver Gathering Blue Messenger Son Number the Stars

Discover More Books Twelve-year-old Jonas Left orphaned and Once a utopian Claire will stop at Through the eyes of ten-
by Lois Lowry lives in a seemingly physically flawed, young community that prided nothing to find her child, year-old Annemarie, we
ideal world. Not until he Kira faces a frightening, itself on welcoming even if it means making watch as the Danish
is given his life uncertain future. She strangers, Village will an unimaginable Resistance smuggles
assignment as the struggles with ever soon be cut off to all sacrifice. In this thrilling almost the entire Jewish
Receiver does he begin broadening outsiders. Matty must series finale, Son population of Denmark,
to understand the dark responsibilities in her deliver the message of thrusts readers once nearly seven thousand
secrets behind his quest for truth, Village’s closing and try again into the chilling people, across the sea
fragile community. discovering things that to convince Seer’s world of The Giver. to Sweden.
will change her life daughter Kira to return
forever. with him before it’s too
late.

Anastasia Krupnik Anastasia Again Anastasia at Your Anastasia Off Her Anastasia on Her Own
Service Rocker

Anastasia's tenth year Twelve-year-old Twelve-year-old Anastasia's seventh- Her family's new,
has some good things, Anastasia is horrified at Anastasia has a series grade science project organized schedule for
like falling in love and her family's decision to of disastrous becomes almost more easy housekeeping
really getting to know move from their city experiences when, than she can handle, makes Anastasia
her grandmother, and apartment to a house in expecting to get a job as but brother Sam, age confident that she can
some bad things, like the suburbs. a lady's companion, she three, and a bust of run the household while
finding out about an is hired to be a maid. Freud nobly aid her. her mother is out of
impending baby brother. town, until she hits
unexpected
complications.

The Willoughbys On the Horizon

A delightfully tongue-in-cheek story about parents trying to get rid A moving account of the lives lost in two of WWII’s most infamous
of their four children and the children who are all too happy to lose events: Pearl Harbor and Hiroshima.
their beastly parents and be on their own.

Editorial Reviews
Review
“A powerful and provocative novel." — New York Times

"Wrought with admirable skill—the emptiness and menace underlying this Utopia emerge step by inexorable step: a richly provocative novel." — Kirkus
Reviews (starred review)

“Lowry is once again in top form raising many questions while answering few, and unwinding a tale fit for the most adventurous readers.” — Publishers Weekly
(starred review)

“The simplicity and directness of Lowry's writing force readers to grapple with their own thoughts.” — Booklist (starred review)

“Lois Lowry has written a fascinating, thoughtful science-fiction novel. The story is skillfully written; the air of disquiet is delicately insinuated. And the theme of
balancing the virtues of freedom and security is beautifully presented." — Horn Book (starred review)

"The Giver has things to say that cannot be said too often, and I hope there will be many, many young people who will be willing to listen. A warning in narrative
form." — Washington Post

About the Author

Lois Lowry is the author of more than forty books for children and young adults, including the New York Times bestselling Giver Quartet and popular Anastasia
Krupnik series. She has received countless honors, among them the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award, the Dorothy Canfield Fisher Award, the California Young
Reader’s Medal, and the Mark Twain Award. She received Newbery Medals for two of her novels, Number the Stars and The Giver.

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Product details
Publisher : Clarion Books; Reprint, Media Tie In edition (July 1, 1993)
Language : English
Paperback : 240 pages
ISBN-10 : 0544336267
ISBN-13 : 978-0544336261
Reading age : 10+ years, from customers
Lexile measure : 760L
Grade level : 7 - 9
Item Weight : 7.4 ounces
Dimensions : 5.5 x 0.62 x 8.25 inches
Best Sellers Rank: #466 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
#1 in Teen & Young Adult Fiction about Values & Virtues (Books)
#3 in Teen & Young Adult Fiction about Emotions & Feelings
#10 in Teen & Young Adult Dystopian
Customer Reviews: 29,463 ratings

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Lois Lowry
Lois Lowry is known for her versatility and invention as a writer. She was born in Hawaii and grew up in New York, Pennsylvania, and Japan.
After studying at Brown University, she married, started a family, and turned her attention to writing. She is the author of more than forty
books for young adults, including the popular Anastasia Krupnik series. She has received countless honors, among them the Boston Globe-
Horn Book Award, the Dorothy Canfield Fisher Award, the California Young Reader's Medal, and the Mark Twain Award. She received

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Top reviews from the United States

Tigerlily64

A Futuristic Society, Engrossing And Thought-Provoking

Reviewed in the United States on July 11, 2015
Verified Purchase

What is the ideal society that you can imagine? Would you like to be happy? Does a society with no war,
no disease, no pain or suffering appeal to you? Would you like to have someone else choose a very
compatible mate for you and not have to worry about dating? How would you like a job that is guaranteed
and is enjoyable and fits your interests and personality? The Giver is about such a society. What is the
trade-off? What is missing in the people’s lives? The Giver is a very thought-provoking book.

Jonas lives in this community. His thought his childhood was delightful. However, at age 12, he knows he
will be assigned a job. He is apprehensive about the prospect. What does he really want to do? He is not
sure. Everyone in the community is assigned an occupation that suits his or her abilities. In a special
ceremony, children who turn 12 years old in a given year are grouped together. He sits in the auditorium
and watches and listens as all the other children in his age group are assigned jobs. Jonas is the only one
left without an assignment. Is something wrong?

At the end of the ceremony, he is finally called up and told he is to be a “Receiver”. This is the highest
honor.
ReadHemore
is to be trained by the Giver. The Giver is the only one in the society that has any sense of

53 people found this helpful

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Riksldy

extraordinary
Reviewed in the United States on February 3, 2023
Verified Purchase

My 11 year old granddaughter had this book as a class assignment. I had not read it, so I read it with her.
It’s remarkable and I’m so glad we read it. Whereas I could be lulled into thinking Sameness wasn’t such
a bad place to live (I am 65, in 2023 & this unsafe violent “post Covid” world is rather crappy & scary right
now), but to give up color for safety? I want my grandchildren to live in color, as I did, and love every
minute of it.

7 people found this helpful

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avonlea

The Giver
Reviewed in the United States on March 4, 2023
Verified Purchase

A quick read
A great read
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and look forward to the rest of the series.
Compelling, moving, bright and profound!

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Bobby Winters

The Giver
Reviewed in the United States on June 28, 2003
Verified Purchase

I've grown fond of children's books. We take better care of our children than we do ourselves. We
encourage our children to eat their vegetables whether we do ourselves or not. We encourage them to
play outside whether we exercise or not. We care about what they are allowed to read, while we read
trash.
We should be concerned about what our children read. Reading is an intimate experience. When we
read, we let someone else come inside our brains, walk around, and leave things. Sticks and stones can
break your bones, but books can change the way you think. We are right to care about the sorts of things
our children invite into their minds, and this concern has led to a children's literature that's better in many
respects than what is supposed to be "adult" literature.
I was converted to children's books in stages, as my children started being interested in reading, but the
final step-the icing on the cake-was a book entitled The Giver, by Lois Lowry. It can be read in a few
hours, but that does not decrease its impact, which is something like that of a sledgehammer. It is the
story of a boy named Jonas who lives in what seems to be an ideal world. There is no crime, no hunger,
and no dissatisfaction. Everyone is in the profession that best suits his talents. It appears to be ideal. The
Greeks
Read had
morea word for a place like this, and that word was "Utopia". It shows the keen insight of those old

21 people found this helpful

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Master Plumber

Great book
Reviewed in the United States on March 4, 2023
Verified Purchase

My kid had to read this book for school , great book , great cover

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Top reviews from other countries

Nez

Fabulous Journey!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 19, 2019
Verified Purchase

I bought this book for my son but I was so intrigued by it that I decided to read it myself. It's a cracking
little book that kept me glued to the pages and I couldn't put it down until I had read it from cover to cover!
To be honest, this didn't take long as it's a fairly short book and the language is reasonably simple. I think
it's probably aimed at pre-teens or early teens.

The main protagonist, Jonas, is coming to the age where he becomes an adult within the 'community' that
he and his family and friends live in. However, things are not as they seem and the direction of the book
takes a deep, dark turn and Jonas starts to see things in a different light....

I won't say much more than that as I don't want to spoil it but let the above intrigue you enough to buy and
read this book! It's an easy read and the story sticks with you.

8 people found this helpful

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J. Ang

Remembering the Future

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 14, 2018
Verified Purchase

Although this novel was published about 25 years ago, it has an immediacy that makes it timeless.
Primarily targeted as a children’s book, it manages to captivate both young and old readers with its
identifiable dystopian themes. An ordinary boy, Jonas, in an ordinary nuclear family unit, soon finds out
what he had taken for normalcy and safety stems from a much more sinister design. There is something
disconcerting about the Sameness that defines the entire community, with strictly regulated progress at
every age as a child, each year marked by a formal ceremony, right from the time he was “born”, or rather
assigned to a family, to the time he turns twelve.

The community regulates its population with systematic “Release” of their elderly and genetically weak
“Newchilds” to “Elsewhere”. What’s probably most eerie is the lack of deep emotions, the tightly-reined
speech and language, and appropriate behaviour expected of everyone in fulfilling their roles apparently
cheerfully and without contest or discontentment. Jonas begins to question this reality and sets himself
apart when he is assigned a specific role to play that would tear his whole world apart.

It is
Read
to Lowry’s
more credit that she creates this preternaturally-perfect little community in a simple manner,

10 people found this helpful

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JenniferT

A wonderfully well written short novel

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 16, 2022
Verified Purchase

An absolutely outstanding short read. This has been in my TBR pile for 6 months and in a way I'm gutted I
left it so long to read. What a phenomally well written short story from the perspective of a 12 year old boy
living in a society where they value sameness and rules. Despite being written from a child's perspective
there is nothing childish about this writing style. It is informed, engaging, it is exceptionally good at the
slow reveal and completely heartbreaking at the same time. Really makes you think, particularly in
relation to totalitarian regimes

One person found this helpful

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Zulu Warrior

The Giver
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 24, 2020
Verified Purchase

Jonas 11yrs lived with his parents and his sister Lily, his father was a Nurturer of small children, mother
worked at the Dept of Justice, father brought one baby home, Gabriel, he was a little behind the other
children and needed some family life, Lily wanted to keep him but only one boy and girl were allowed, the
society they lived in had no memories, everything was one colour, children at 12yrs are told what
employment they would do, Jonas was shocked to find he had been given the most important one, he
was apprenticed to the Receiver who was responsible for all memories of the society

He could discuss nothing of what he learnt or the memories he was given, he was given good memories
of snow and sunshine but also given memories of pain and torture, each time he received a memory the
Receiver lost it to Jonas, father was trying to decide which of twin boys were to be nurtured and which
was to be release, Jonas had heard this word before when old people are released, he asks the Receiver
who tells him, Jonas is totally shocked

2 people found this helpful

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Adam Frankenberg

Coming of age in a dystopian world

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 23, 2014
Verified Purchase

Step by step Lois Lowry draws you into Jonas' world that of his family who live somewhere in the world,
simply referred to as the community, sometime in the (distant?) future. Jonas is approaching the
ceremony of the twelves where children start to become adults and the role in the community is chosen.
As we learn more and more about the society in which Jonas lives it because increasingly dark and
troubling more and more of a dystopia rather than a utopia.

As this is a book for young adults the language is simple and the book itself is reactively short. This does
not mean that the book itself is either simply of lightweight. It ask profound question about our own society
and indeed all societies. I would highly recommend it to any Young adult, maybe over the age of thirteen
as some of the ideas raised I would also say that any adult reader would probably find lots in it to make
them think. And it is certainly an engaging read.

I found Jonas' voice utterly realistic though out that the subtle way in which he starts to see the word
differently is beautifully conveyed.

7 people found this helpful

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