The Giver Review
What does a book expert think: Get a comprehensive overview of the reception and review of The Giver.
Article written by Emma Baldwin
B.A. in English, B.F.A. in Fine Art, and B.A. in Art Histories from East Carolina University.
The novel was published in 1993 and is one of the most successful young adult novels of all time. It focuses on a 12-year-old schoolboy named Jones whose world is altered after learning he’s been chosen to become the next Reciever of Memory. His perception of his reality, everything from the community’s rules to the color of his own eyes, changes.
Key Facts about The Giver
- Title: The Giver
- When/where written: Early 1990s in Maine, United States
- Published: April 16, 1993
- Literary Period: Contemporary
- Genre: Dystopian
- Point-of-View: Third-person limited
- Setting: A confined community sometime in the future, cut off from the outside world.
- Climax: Jonas decides to leave the community.
- Antagonist: The community and Sameness
Lois Lowry and The Giver
While Lowry has written more than 40 books for kids and young adults, The Giver remains her most popular. It details a seemingly utopian world in which no one has to remember anything bad or confusing. When asked to speak about the inspiration behind the novel, Lowry cited memories of her aging father. He was losing pieces of his memory, she explained. One particularly moving moment occurred when she had to explain the death of her sister, his daughter, to him, something that he’d forgotten. This triggered her to start considering what a world without this kind of sorrow would be like.
Books Related to The Giver
The Giver is one of the best-loved novels of the dystopian genre today. The genre is incredibly popular, with origins reaching back to George Orwell’s 1984 and We by Yevgeny Zamyatin(the latter is commonly considered the first dystopian novel ever written). Lowry likely drew inspiration from those who came before her and the work done to popularize the genre. Unlike some of the novels in this genre, The Giver is often read by young readers. Although it is certainly not only a young adult novel, it appeals to middle school age students due to the protagonist and his peers’ age.
Over the decades, since We and Jack London’s Iron Heel were written, the dystopian genre has expanded, becoming one of the most popular amongst readers and writers. Today, there are numerous contemporary examples of novels and short stories that can be categorized this way. Some of these include The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood, The Stand by Stephen King, The Power by Naomi Alderman, The Hunger Games by Susan Collins, and The Road by Cormac McCarthy.
The Lasting Impact of The Giver
Lois Lowry is an accomplished author, having explored young adult literature as few other writers have. She’s written about familial loss, the Holocaust, preteen troubles, and, of course, Jonas’s fictional community in The Giver. Since its publication, the book that many consider Lowry’s masterpiece has sold 12 million copies. It is required reading in schools all over the United States, for those in or just entering middle school. It’s been adapted into a film, play, musical, and opera.
When reading The Giver, one is reminded of the past’s importance, a lesson that humanity continually returns to. Through the eyes of Jonas, a young man who sees the world just a little bit differently, readers can step back from their role as members of a society and see it from the outside as Jonas learns to. In the end, readers leave the novel with a new sense of why memory, free will, and human emotions (the positive and the negative) are so crucial to living a full life.
The Giver Themes and Analysis
Unlock the hidden meanings: Dive deeper into the central themes and symbolism, and analysis of The Giver.
The Giver Historical Context
Setting the scene for The Giver: Understand the time and place that inspired its creation and relevance.
The Giver Plot Summary
The Giver in a nutshell: A quick overview of the essential plot points, characters, and ideas.
The Giver Quotes
The words that resonate: Find memorable quotes from The Giver that capture its essence of the book.
The Giver Character List
Get to know the characters: Understand the characters in The Giver.
About Emma Baldwin
B.A. in English, B.F.A. in Fine Art, and B.A. in Art Histories from East Carolina University.