Son

This is the fourth and final book in “The Giver Series.” It seeks to wrap up and bring a conclusion to the threads explored in the prior books.

First, it starts with a story not revealed before. The story is that of Claire, a birthmother from Jonas’ original community, three years older than Jonas. She was the mother of Gabe, the child that Jonas left the community early, without completing his preparation, to prevent from being killed.

This book reveals that Jonas was not the only malcontent in his community. Jonas became unhappy as memories were transferred to him by Giver, in Jonas’ capacity as the new Receiver. Claire on the other hand was required to be off the pills in order to mature and become a birthmother. After giving birth to Gabe, and not taking the pills, she found she did not fit in. What is interesting about this is the implication that anyone from Jonas’ community could have felt emotions had they also stopped taking their pills.

Another reveal was that some of the humans who serviced the community, particularly the boat crew, were of a completely different society. In other words, even though there were other communities known to Jonas and the others, it was not well known that there was interaction with other, people that came from place without sameness. I like the added depth “Son” adds to “The Giver.”

After that we follow Claire through hurt and many trials, of building strength, and a great act of self-affirmation.

Which brings us to Trademaster, a hinted at evil in “Messenger.” We leave off there and instead explore the story of Gabe, no longer a baby, but now an adolescent with budding powers all his own.

This section of the book was all right, though I do not like the end. In the end evil was “vanquished.” But the way it is put it rings with finality. The problem with is the struggle was relatively weak. Perhaps evil was severely weakened, or at least severely weakened in that particular locale, but “vanquished” in a series (“The Giver Series”) that emphasizes precision of language and generally does a very good job of not breaking the suspension of disbelief. And yet, at the end of the series, it topples; and for me it topples due to overly broad language, a lack of narrowing the action.

This does not ruing the book or the series. After the ambiguity at the end of “The Giver,” the desire to learn what becomes of Kira and her village at the end of “Gathering Blue,” and the arguably selfless sacrifice of Matty at the end of “Messenger” (that in a dark twist serves Jonas’ arguably selfish desire), after all of these, the ending of “Son” falls flat in comparison.

For me at least the conclusion is too neat and too tidy.

Messenger

This is a sequel to "Gathering Blue" (this is the third book in "The Giver Series"). Jonah from "The Giver" makes a new appearance as one of the primary characters. Kira, her father, and Matty make appearances again.

This book is a descending spiral into darkness, which is fine. To me the worst part is the end. Essentially a character is sacrificed so Leader can bring his future wife into village, and this kind of bothers me.

That said, I’m not sure if the character is dead yet, his body was physically healed at the end. So, there is hope.

On to the next book I suppose.

Gathering Blue

"Gathering Blue" is a sequel to "The Giver" and second book in "The Giver Series." There is no mention of any of The Giver’s characters, the society in the book, or anything else. Generally speaking we are in another post-calamity world exploring an existing society, that is flawed. Again, we view the society through the eyes of a child. Therefore, as it is a sequel, we must assume the same world, and probably the same time frame.

The society in "Gathering Blue" is much harsher than the one in "The Giver" and much less forgiving. The world is full of danger and pain, or at least that is what everyone thinks. Kira, the protagonist, seems to luck out and find good fortune, seemingly always stalked by an ominous shadow and suspicious circumstance that while obvious to the reader, Kira is often oblivious to.

The book is certainly a compelling read. It concludes in a manner with less ambiguity than "The Giver," but I feel like "Gathering Blue" ends too soon while The Giver with its ambiguous ending left me more satisfied that it was a completed tale.

Onward to the next book.

The Giver

"The Giver" is about a dystopian society. The society is devoid of generational memory; no one remembers anything except the now. Emotions are discussed explicitly, yet no one really feels anything.

Children are murdered, the old and infirm are murdered, and those who cannot follow the rules are put to death. And yet life is very comfortable and very safe.

The book is ultimately about a boy who tries to change all of this. And at the end of the book it is unclear whether the protagonist and the young child he attempts to save are living.

As the book progresses the society is revealed to be less novel and darker and grimmer than it appears on its surface. The book spirals into darkness and depression as it continues.

Honestly, it’s hard for me to write a complicated review of this book. It is also one of my favorites.

From here on, I’m reading the sequels. I hope they are just as good.