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Liked It1 of 1 members found this review helpful “I re-read this book again today, don't know how many times that makes. But I was struck this time by how many similarities there are between The Giver and Gathering Blue. I think I liked the book more this time than I ever have before.” see full review » see other reviews » |
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“This was a pretty good book, but not as good as The Giver. This book lacked some suspense and action, but was also similar in some ways. One way that it was similar was that the main character in both books lived in a community which knew almost nothing about the outside world. In The Giver, Jonas lived in the same world that we do but did not know that. In Gathering Blue, the main character knew about the past from the singers robe but did not really understand it. At the same time, she knew nothing about anything outside of her community. Also, in both books, the main character was being suppressed by the people ruling their area. In the Giver, the government of the outside world and the community was making sure that nobody knew about anything else than the community and the other surrounding ones and also wanted to make the lives of the people as dull as possible by doing things like making sure that the land had no features and that the people could not love or see color. In Gathering Blue, the leaders made sure that everything within the town went exactly the way that they wanted it to and that they got exactly what they wanted. Going back to the lacking of suspense in Gathering Blue, there really was no action that could keep you on the edge of your seat. The only thing that provided a little bit of suspense was that a friend of the main character went off into the woods and did not come back for a long time. I recommend this book to people who like books that do not make you nervous or scared. For you people who like action packed books, this book may not be right for you. ”
Lucien S wrote this review 2 days ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Most definitely my favorite in her Giver companion trilogy. Kira is a character that women of all ages can emulate and admire. Lois Lowry's ability to create a society that is completely honest and completely dysfunctional is working full force. I can't think of a more inspiring, engrossing, and beautiful novel for young adults.”
Rachel Janelle wrote this review 3 days ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Gathering Blue was an excellent book! Lois Lowry once again proves that every society has its secrets through The Giver and Gathering Blue. This book was gripping from beginning to end and was wonderfully written.”
EMM wrote this review 4 days ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“OK, what did you think happened at the end of The Giver? If you haven’t read that book and you want to, you probably shouldn’t read any further. You were warned.
Dana Huff wrote this review 4 days ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
I was sure that Jonas and Gabe died in the snow — that the house with the lights was a trick of Jonas’s imagination as he succumbed to hypothermia. I guess I’m a bit of a pessimist, then? However, Lois Lowry answers this question in her FAQ:
What happened at the end of THE GIVER?
I made the ending ambiguous on purpose. “Ambiguous” means that it can have different explanations. I like to leave it that way so that each reader can use his or her imagination and decide what is happening. But I do think it is a happy ending.
I fail to see how Lowry might consider Jonas and Gabe dying a “happy ending,” so that must mean the light was real and they were rescued. I did some digging online and found out that there is now a trilogy. I had heard of Gathering Blue, but not Messenger. With the teaser that Gathering Blue mentions Jonas in an oblique way and that he would be a character in Messenger, I decided to pick up these two books.
I have just finished Gathering Blue. I think overall that it is a weaker story than The Giver, which I enjoyed much more. This novel, like The Giver, is set in some future time after an apparent nuclear holocaust. In Kira’s village, people live in primitive fashion — disabled people are left to die in “the Field,” children are abused, and mysterious “beasts” lurk in the woods and will attack anyone who strays too far.
Kira has a gift for needlework and is spared death despite the fact that she has a physical disability. When her mother dies, the Council of Guardians taps her for a special job — she will restore and complete the Singer’s robe. Like the Giver in the first book, the Singer memorized the account of life up to and through the Ruin, when man was nearly destroyed.
I did not find that I sympathized as much with these characters as I did the characters in The Giver. I think I just identified more with Jonas. I could “see” the setting in The Giver. The contrast between a supposedly civlized society with barbaric practices — Release — seemed much more poignant. It was much easier to imagine Kira’s society did awful things to its citizens when they themselves treated each other so poorly on a regular basis.
Still, if you want to be reassured about Jonas, you’ll probably want to read this bridge book so you can understand Messenger — my next project.”“I read this book last year and it was very depressive and unique. But in my opinion its a lovely book because the main character, Kira is struggling to stay in the village. When I got to the end I was glad that she stayed in the village and not in the field. ”
Yu Fen 816 wrote this review 7 days ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“This book is very good and if you like this book...READ "THE MESSENGER"!”
Syd 22 wrote this review 2 weeks ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“This is a good book. It's about a girl named Kira. Her mother dies and she is sent to court. They take her in as long as she will fix the Singer's robe. There she meets Thomas. And takes lessons to die yarn with Annabelle. But when Annabelle dies, how will Kira find out how to make some other colors of yarn.”
Rachel B wrote this review 2 weeks ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“I had to read it for english class”
Monica M wrote this review 2 weeks ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“So far its a good book..... I'm glad my teacher gave it to me.....oooooooooooooo it good!!! :)”
* :) Rebecca Reed :) * wrote this review 2 weeks ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
