Thoughts on The Giver

Sorry about the delay on this post, but here it is!

I read The Giver and really liked it. I especially liked the character of Jonas; I was intrigued by his eventual understanding of how shallow and unreal his life--and the lives of everyone else in his community--had been up til his sessions with the Giver. I read a review that pointed out that his world seems to be a utopia where everyone is happy and everything is perfect all of the time. The more you read, though, the more you realize what a distopia (the opposite of a utopia) this community is. There are many things about this community that are disturbing. First, everyone is the same. Everyone has the same experiences; they get bikes the same year, live in perfect four-person families, get assigned jobs at the same time. Second, they have no knowledge of real emotion--sadness, loss, pain, betrayal, joy, sexual longing, etc. Only the Giver knows all of these emotions. Third, the treatment of those who do not fit in to this world is pretty terrible. If you haven't read the whole thing yet, keep going and you'll see what Jonas discovers about the elderly and others who are "released."

I am curious what you all think about the end: does he die? Does he end up at Village (from Messenger) where he becomes Leader? I went back and looked at Messenger and there is a reference to how Leader arrived--on a sled. I hope this is Jonas and that after the end of Messenger he marries Kira (don't you, too, Nichole, since she can't marry Matty?). Also I think the character of Gabriel in Messenger (the kid who's troublesome and gets lots of help from Mentor) is the same Gabriel that Jonas rescues.

I'm wondering, too, what you think about Jonas' decision to take off NOT in accordance with his plan with the Giver? Do you think he did the right thing in leaving with Gabriel? Was it too risky or necessary? What do you think of his leaving at all? Was he right to do it?

So tell me and us what you think about the book. I'm curious to hear your thoughts.

Kristen