I read The Giver in middle school, too. I remember starting it in fifth grade and being confused, but then finishing and liking it when we read it as a class in sixth grade. I remember being confused by the ending though, and was hoping that when I finished, I'd have a more definitive answer about what happened. Even though it's not the most uplifting book it was definitely interesting to read, and I noticed much more than I did (or remembered that I did) in middle school.
Basically, The Giver is about a boy named Jonas who lives in a controlled society where no one sees colors, there are no feelings, and the society is run by a very strict set of rules. At age twelve, children become adults and get assigned to jobs in the community. Jonas gets selected to be the new Receiver, a very honored and respected position. There is only one Receiver in the society, and he (or she) is in charge of holding all memories for the society. Jonas becomes the new Receiver, and the old Receiver becomes known as the Giver. The Giver transmits memories to Jonas of things he has never before seen or experienced, from simple things like colors, snow, sun, and sledding, to pain and war. Jonas is not allowed to speak about any of his training or new memories to anyone, so as a result he forms a special bond with the Giver, while simultaneously feeling more and more isolated from his family, friends, and community. Eventually, Jonas finds out that if he leaves the community, the memories will leave him and find homes in the people of the community. Jonas and the Giver decide that the would be beneficial to everyone because people should know about good and bad things, and not be kept from knowledge. Therefore, one night Jonas escapes his house. He takes with him a baby, named Gabriel, who has been staying with Jonas's family for extra care before he is given to a family. The evening before Jonas escapes, Jonas's father tells the family that Gabriel will be released (aka euthanized) because he cannot sleep through the night, despite so much extra care. Jonas decides to save Gabriel's life and therefore takes him along when he runs away. For the first few days, there are planes out searching for Jonas, but after a while the planes disappear, and Jonas and Gabriel get farther and farther from the community. They get very hungry, and the weather gets cold. They are very cold, and at the end stumble upon a sled at the top of the hill. They get on the sled and go down the hill. The ending is unclear whether Jonas is lucid or living within his memory. He has either escaped and found a new community that may take him and Gabriel in, or he and Gabriel have frozen to death.
Despite reading this book at age 11 and now mid-20's, the ending is no more clear. There's evidence either way, but no definitive proof about what actually did or, to disprove something, did not happen. It's hard to say if this story had a happy or sad ending because it's unclear what actually happened. If Jonas made it to another society, it would be a happy ending, but if he died it would be sad. Either way, he got his wish of choice and free will, and the choice to die/leave was all his own, and if he died, at least he died experiencing life, sensations, and colors. Either he died living or he is still living.
Even though it was a children's/young adult book, it was still very thought provoking. It's a book that makes you appreciate the way things are in your society now, and reminds you not to take things for granted, even simple things like color and love. So even though I didn't set out today to read a book, I did, and it was refreshing.
(I am also in the middle of Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, with Pride and Prejudice up next. More to come!)
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