The Giver by Lois Lowry
The Giver Series #1
(1993) 208 pages

“The Giver” is a novel about a dystopian society. The protagonist, Jonas, grew up in a
perfect and controlled society without any war or pain. However, nobody is allowed to have their
own emotions and decisions. Everything that happens is controlled by the community. In this
society, whenever someone turns 12, they are assigned a job. When Jonas turned 12, he was
chosen to become the Receiver of Memory, a job responsible for holding memories in the
community. During Jonas’s training with the current Receiver of Memory, he discovered real
feelings like hardship and happiness. After Jonas realizes that the society hides real feelings
and emotions from everyone, he is upset and does not want to take part in the society any
longer. Jonas finds out that a baby named Gabriel was going to be killed for not being able to
sleep properly and wants to escape with him. Finally, Jonas ran away from the community and
saved Gabriel from being killed, hoping for a better life.