What I'm Reading: The Giver, by Lois Lowry
Is it Friday already?
I guess I've had a pretty busy week filled with work, wine, and... More work? Fortunately, I was able to one worthwhile thing (just kidding, the wine was also totally worthwhile!).
I read The Giver by Lois Lowry on Thursday. Have you read this book?
I thought this was a book that everyone had read, but I've been polling people I've come across, and for the most part, they hadn't.
The Giver was published in 1992, and I was just a kid then, so maybe it makes sense that I feel like most of my peers had read this: it was still relatively new when we would have been "old enough" to read it. In my case though, by the time I was "old enough" for this Newberry award winning book, I was very busy reading much more advanced things. And I'm not saying that to sound smart, because it's really unfortunate: it's why I'm reading children's books and young adult books when I'm in my LATE-TWENTIES.
I want to say that reading these books is a timeless thing and, "sure, you can always enjoy a book if it's good!" But is it?
My thought is..
...YES...
...though perhaps not in the same way.
I read this book and I pay attention to how the plot unfolds, and the knowledge in the back of my head that something is going on that I don't quite know yet. Once I find that thing out, there's still more to learn. There's clues of conspiracy (like about the lying rule), and suspense building to the last few chapters where everything goes against the grain.
The end? Obviously I won't share the details (because you really should read The Giver on your own!), but it completely surprised me. And I'm not sure I like it yet.
Did you?
This post is part of a weekly series on "What I'm Reading." I'll be talking about whatever book I happen to be reading, and you can look for this series every Friday.