The Giver

The ending!  What happened?  This is the second book in a row that I've read where the ending leaves so many possibilities.  I know that technically Lois Lowry's The Giver is the first in a quartet of books, but after reading the description for Gathering Blue, I don't know if it has anything to do with Jonas.  So, that leaves me wanting to know what happens next.  As crazy as this kind of ending makes me, I also liked it.  I like the possibilities.

I'm not really sure what my thoughts are on the rest of the book.  I enjoyed it.  I can see why so many have loved it over the years - The Giver was published 20 years ago, before dystopian novels became a thing. The main character, Jonas, is thoughtful and introspective.  Initially, he balances what he learns with the way he grows up.  The more he learns about the truth, however, especially about his father, the more he wants to turn away.  This isn't a very action-packed novel.  The reader mostly orbits Jonas and his time learning.  The Giver doesn't need action, I wanted to know what Jonas was going to learn next, I wanted to know what his decisions were going to be.

Even though I can tell from the trailers that they've aged Jonas (he's only 12 in the novel) and that there is more action scenes, I'm interested in seeing the movie.  I want to see how they bring Jonas's internal world to life on the screen.  I've heard mixed reviews on the movie.  I wonder if they traded some of Jonas's thoughtfulness for action sequences.  I'll just have to wait and see.  The book is amazing though, enduring for decades.  I'm sure I've missed tons of stuff, I can see myself reading The Giver again and giving it to my kids to read.  I think it will still be in schools and read for years to come.