The Giver by Lois Lowry

I have read this book before in school but I didn't remember what the book was about or what went on in The Giver. After I read the book again I think my thoughts have changed dramatically from the first time I read it otherwise this book would have been more vivid in my mind. I also told one of my friends that I was reading The Giver and she was so excited because she loved the book. I was a little hesitant when replying to her comment. I'm not really sure if I like this book at all. At some parts I believe it is very unique and imaginative but then there are other parts where I think why would this be appropriate to write about.

The part with the book that I have trouble with is the whole fact of "sameness," not being able to make their own choices, there is no sense of emotion or feeling of love, or color. I guess it is because I have a belief that everyone has their own goals and dreams, no one should be told how to live, what their job will be, or who their parents will be. How can you take that away from someone and why would they want to? Why does everyone have to be the same plain people all the time? The whole process of "releasing" is a problem for me. It's like this community is hiding the fact that these people who are "released" go off and live another life in another community but they don't they die and are replaced as if they didn't matter.

The part of the book I enjoy is the character Jonas and how he also questions these crazy things that go on in this community and he is the one who can change what happens in the future. It might be bad for the community at first but they are missing the huge things in life: love, emotions, individualization, passions and dreams. I think Jonas knows what these people need and even though he is going against what the rest of the community believes he is doing things that he believes in which no one in the community has done. I think it's a book to use with high schoolers or middle schoolers because it gets them thinking about their own way of being an individual but also their emotions, passions and dreams in life that they can have.