The Giver

This week I am reading The Giver, by Lois Lowry. Although I have already read more than half of this book, I am ambivalent whether I like it, or not. There are reasons I like it, and reasons I don't. I have even re-read many parts of it to to help me decide what is enjoyable or not, but I am still indecisive.

The reasons I like the book are because Lois Lowry does a great job describing all the scenes and the character development is great. Her use of descriptive adjectives really paints a picture in my head. "Tiny, cold, featherlike feelings peppered his body and face". Instead of just telling us about the sensation of snowflakes on the skin, Lois tries to help us imagine what it would be like for someone who has never experienced snow. For me, the best books are all about the characters. In the beginning of The Giver, a baby boy, Gabe, was brought into Jonas's family unit. Jonas, the main character, did not really care for all that much for this new baby boy. At first, this story may seem pretty normal because many kids are uncertain when a new baby sibling comes into their household. But we realize that this is not a normal family unit and Jonas's life is very different than most kids. This difference is what makes the story and characters interesting to follow.

One reasons why I did not enjoy the book is because the plot is hard to follow. So far, I am on page 121, and I am still waiting for something interesting to happen. It seems like the plot just describes Jonas's memories, but the recollections are random and scattered. They don't seem to connect in a logical way. His world is so different and disjointed that it makes the book confusing. I am not sure if it is just me, but after about 80 pages, I had to start reading the book from the beginning again because I was getting lost.

Overall, I really cannot decide if I like this book or not, so far. If someone else chooses to read this book, I would like to hear their input, and maybe they can help me understand the book a little bit better. When I finish the book, I hope that many of my unanswered questions will be explained and, hopefully I will know how I feel about it.