The Giver is a dystopian novel based in an imaginary world. In this world, humans have sacrificed many things for ‘sameness’ in order to promote harmony. It is a world without emotions and without colour. The story is told from the perspective of Jonas, a 12-year-old in the ‘community’.

At age 12, the children of the community are given their job assignments. These assignments are chosen based on how they spend their volunteer hours. When Jonas’ name is not called, he starts to worry. Then his name is called out, after all his classmates. He learns he has been chosen as the new Receiver of Memories. The Receiver is the most respected elder. His job is to keep the memories of the past for the community and help them make decisions.
After becoming the Receiver, Jonas soon starts to feel the emotions of pain, sorrow and happiness for the first time. Everyone else is living in a world designed to suppress emotions. He soon uncovers the hidden truth about his community and starts to question their ruthless methods.

This book reminds me of another book I have read called “Matched”. In both stories, the government exercises strict control. Both worlds have sacrificed their freedom to make decisions in order to attain their version of perfection. It can also be compared to “The Hunger Games”, in the sense that it makes you question how much control you have over your own life and how much control the government should have over you.

I have only read one other book by Lois Lowry. That was called "Number The Stars" and is set during the Second World War. Both of these books have been told from the perspective of young children who are made to deal with harsh circumstances at a very young age. Probably because these books are of very different genres, there are not many other similarities.
The storyline of ‘Number the Stars’ is a bit flat for older children, who will enjoy The Giver more.