books 2008: The Giver, by Lois Lowry

[supercheesegirl]

I am honestly surprised that I never read this before. I think I would have liked it very much back when I was in middle school. As an adult, I still liked it, but I did feel like I could see many of the plot twists coming. I was also disappointed by the ending. As a kid, I probably would have read it as "hooray they got there!", but as an adult, it read to me more like "he's hallucinating while they freeze to death". Which, you know, I really didn't want. If Lowry meant it to be the good optimistic ending, I wish she'd written one more page, one more paragraph even, upon which people come running out with blankets and hot chocolate to greet them. But I am really not totally sure how she meant it. It's a YA book, so I think she intended the nice ending, but the freezing-to-death ending would probably make more sense. Rgh.

Comments

[espadarte.livejournal.com]

I didn't read that till a couple years ago either! I think based on a discussion about what happened at the end of Le Petit Prince. And this had a similar type of thing, though I'd agree... maybe it's just cause I'm older, but I didn't feel it was so ambiguous, I am in the "oops, they're dead, god this is depressing" camp.

Have you read the Little Prince? I'd love to hear your take on the ending of that as well. Also, it's my most favorite book of all time ever.

[minkrose]

It's also probably my most favourite book. I had an abridged version on tape that I used to listen to when I was a kid which helped me sleep. It still has a very calming effect on me.

The ending never bothered me though... because that wasn't the point of the story, to me. The middle of it was the part I loved and I just sort of ignored the ending.

I actually recorded it to CD and ripped the tracks to my computer because it's completely unavailable now. It's read by Louis Jourdan (french accent!), if you're ever interested in hearing it.

hi, apparent neighbor

[espadarte.livejournal.com]

Oh the Little Prince? I'm with you, the ending doesn't bother me like the ending of the Giver; I agree it's not the point of the story at all, and also that, whatever you think happened at the end? the point and force of the story don't change. at least in my mind.

i'd love to hear it recorded!

i wonder also, they must have it read aloud in french though, somewhere, right? i collect copies of the french version, lol.

Re: hi, apparent neighbor

[minkrose]

I haven't read the Giver, though I've read enough depressing things lately (I'm actually working my way through From Hell atm). If someone lent me a copy, I would probably read it but I wouldn't seek it out.

The little prince has so many pieces to it that each one is like a mini-story for me. Each part affects me in a completely different way.


Well, I can't imagine I'm really infringing on copyright by sharing it since it's completely unavailable through other means. I can get the tracks to you if you'd like, probably through Yousendit.com. They're not equal in length because I was checking the quality of the recording during side A of the audio tape but side B is a continuous track. They're mostly larger than gmail's file size limit so let me know what's easiest for you.


There must be french audio versions but I haven't looked for any. I wonder if Jourdan did a french version... that would make sense, but I've never heard of it.
Sadly, I cannot read French although it is my favourite language. But I do have at least two different english translations.

ok, sleep time for meee.

Re: hi, apparent neighbor

[supercheesegirl.livejournal.com]

Unrelated to any of the things you're discussing: you're both really cool and bookish people and I bet you'd have tons to chat about over coffee. Since apparently you live near each other. :)

Does this help? :)

[jude.livejournal.com]

http://www.randomhouse.com/teachers/guides/give.html

(fwiw, I did read it as a child, and then again as an adult, and had pretty much exactly the change in reaction you described. I do still like to think they are alive, or at least that if they died it was painlessly because of their hope in the future, and that their deaths still served a higher purpose in helping their community to change its lifestyle.)