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| The Giver's bearded face |
While visiting a friend some time ago, we got on the topic of dystopian novels, and it came out that I'd somehow missed reading "The Giver" – 1994's Newbery Medal winner – while growing up. I immediately recognized the cover art so I'm sure I'd seen his bearded face at the school library, but for whatever reason I never pulled the book from the shelves.
When I finally got around to renewing my library card late last month, I glanced over my one-day reading list and saw that "The Giver" was by far the oldest item on it, so I checked out the ebook version and was quickly hooked1.
Minor spoilers below!
"The Giver" takes place in The Community, a seemingly idyllic society in which every person has a defined role and every day is a reassuring, well-rehearsed routine. The morning begins with the sharing of dreams and the evening ends with a sharing of feelings; there are no secrets because there is no need to be secretive.
However, it soon becomes apparent that The Community's members live shallow lives. Their dreams are pale reflections of their daily activities, and the feelings they share are shallow, tepid. No one has regrets because no one makes choices. No one suffers because no one is allowed to make mistakes. But no one experiences peace and joy, beauty and the sublime; no one loves.
Of course, Jonas and the Giver are the exception. They alone know exhilaration, music, golden sunsets, Christmas; they alone can remember pain, loss, starvation, war. They alone realize that The Community gave up more than it gained. And Jonas, too young to share The Giver's fatalistic pessimism, recognizes the difference between right and wrong.
In short, "The Giver" introduces the idea that giving up pieces of ourselves – even negative, hurtful ones – lessens us and the whole human experience. While these themes were explored more deeply in "Brave New World"2, "The Giver" does something important: it makes them accessible to young adult readers. I'm glad I've read it.
My highly subjective rating: Good/5
1 I spent most of a New Year's Eve party reading it – yes, really – and was just barely pulled away by a rowdy game of Cranium. (back)
2 I still say "Brave New World" is the reigning champion of classic dystopian literature. That's right, gauntlet thrown: move over "1984"! (back)
So glad you enjoyed it! This makes the short list of books I've reread multiple times and at various places in my life. Two other ones also on that list: Til We Have Faces and That Hideous Strength by CS Lewis. If you haven't read these you really should :-)
ReplyDeleteI read "That Hideous Strength" (and the rest of the Space Trilogy) in high school! It was so different from the previous two that I didn't know what to make of it at the time. I read "Abolition of Man" (do you know it?) years later and liked it, so I'd probably get more out of THS now.
DeleteHaven't read "Til We Have Faces" but it's now on my list!
In terms of making those ideas accessible to children, a couple of others things also come to mind (they're not books though): Inside Out, and Fruits Basket.
ReplyDeleteTo a much lesser extent, the issue is also addressed in an episode of Avatar: The Last Airbender.
PS. Til We Have Faces *is* really good.
I LOVED Inside Out! It's now one of the handful of Blu-Rays I own and my second favorite Pixar movie (behind Up).
DeleteKids pick up on a lot of things and are smarter than many adults give them credit for. I say that giving them the language to describe their world and a "safe" way to do it is for the good.