Review of Lois Lowry's "The Giver"

I picked up The Giver at a local used bookstore. It is a thrilling thing to buy a book on a whim and then discover an incredible story wrapped within. To know absolutely nothing about the author or the book, and then feel the full rush of a masterfully told tale.

I've felt this sensation before, many times (as I discover more and more authors whom I love to read), but each time it's the same...like diving into the ocean on a hot summer day. It's fresh, and it's breathtaking.

My copy of The Giver is 180 pages, and the Newbery Medal on the front tells me it's a young adult award winner. A word of advice...never let the words "young adult novel" scare you away from a powerful story. After all, The Chronicles of Narnia are "young adult" and they're magnificent.

The Giver is a tightly told story from the perspective of an eleven year old boy named Jonas. The story is set in a far, indeterminably future where it's hinted that the Earth has been strategically altered by humankind. The goal: Sameness. Nearly every aspect of individuality has been erased from society in order to create a carefully predictable world free of conflict.

History has been erased from the minds of all humans...all but a select few.

There is one individual in each community who must bear the burden of the past. Of knowing what Earth was like before the sameness. And Jonas has been chosen.

As the reader follows Jonas in this carefully sterilized world, we come to several shocking moments that reveal just how much the elimination of freedom and individuality has cost humankind. Like all of man's personal attempts to create a "heaven on earth," too much of that which is precious must be thrown on the Utopian alter.

Lowry's characters are fully alive--even in this stringent world--and we ache for them to know the truth. Will they? You'll have to find out for yourself.

The Giver is a story that will not fade from my memory, ever.

Poll results

In a landslide victory, the voters have given permission to Brandon to go off-topic when he chooses. Brandon pledges not to go crazy with his newly given privileges, and promises to continue to bring his readers the sci-fi and writing related posts they've come to expect.

Please vote in my poll over my blog topics

Hey friends, I need your help making a decision. For sometime now I've considered touching on topics on my blog outside the sphere of Christian sci-fi.

Reason #1
I often have lots of other topics I'd like to raise, but thus far have suppressed them.

Reason #2
I don't ALWAYS have something interesting to say about Christian sci-fi/fantasy (and I'm the type who only likes to share things if I feel it's important. In other words, I don't like to pull topics out of the air...because there isn't any passion behind it.)

Things that I am considering adding to my topics on this blog are:
1) Information about my writing that doesn't fall into the sci-fi/fantasy genre
2) Christian thoughts on a variety of topics (eg: culture, apologetics, music, art etc.)
3) And a small smattering of personal information, but only things of high importance. Not like Facebook, or Myspace where one posts about the cheeseburger one had for lunch. (For instance, my wife and I are going to have a little boy in less than a month! That, I feel, I'd like to post about.)

So, what are your thoughts? Should I create another website and keep Christian Science Fiction purely on the topic of the title, or would it be appropriate to include off-topic subject matter on here as well?

Vote in the poll above!!!

Donita K. Paul's newest book

Donita K. Paul has written another book in her Dragon Keeper Chronicles world, BUT it is not part of that series. The genre is Christian fantasy, and it's nice to see more and more of these being released by publishers. I can only hope this trend continues. Marcher Lord Press is doing great work in advancing the sci-fi and fantasy genre with a Christian worldview, but the mainstream Christian houses still have their foot in that door as well.

Here's what author Wayne Thomas Batson had to say about the this newest book by Paul:

“Have you ever looked at a painting from a distance and thought it beautiful, only to draw nearer to it and realize it was more exquisite, complex, and wonderful than you ever imagined? The Vanishing Sculptor by Donita K. Paul is like that. I began reading and liked it. As usual, I found myself happily enveloped in a vivid world full of emerlindians, tumanhofers, and dragons. But then, just when I thought the work was beautiful, something deep within me started to tingle…and I began to see that The Vanishing Sculptor was far more than simple entertainment or escape. I had one ‘Ah Ha!’ moment after another. Clues everywhere, right in front of my eyes, blossomed into truth until, at last, I put down the book and swam in the rich waters of adventure, peace, and blessed melancholy–that rare state revealing you’ve been touched by the story of an inspired author. The Vanishing Sculptor is sure to be loved by readers and re-readers of every age.”

If you would like to find out more on this book, check out these fellow bloggers featuring The Vanishing Sculptor!

Brandon Barr
Jim Black
Justin Boyer
Rachel Briard
Karri Compton
Amy Cruson
CSFF Blog Tour
Stacey Dale
D. G. D. Davidson
Jeff Draper
April Erwin
Karina Fabian
Linda Gilmore
Todd Michael Greene
Katie Hart
Ryan Heart
Becky Jesse
Cris Jesse
Jason Joyner
Julie
Carol Keen
Krystine Kercher
Dawn King
Rebecca LuElla Miller
Mirtika
Eve Nielsen (posting later in the week)
Nissa
John W. Otte
Lyn Perry
Crista Richey
Cheryl Russell
Chawna Schroeder
James Somers
Speculative Faith
Rachel Starr Thomson
Robert Treskillard
Steve Trower
Fred Warren
Dona Watson
Phyllis Wheeler
Elizabeth Williams
KM Wilsher

American Midnight sneak peak

Thanks to everyone who commented on the title, "American Midnight". With no cover art, and not even a hint at the genre, I was pleasantly surprised how right on the majority of you were.

Here are some comments that were dead on:

Logan K Stuart said: "It conjures up images of a dark and black night for America, when things are going wrong and hope is lost. But it also leaves room for hope, knowing the Dawn could be potentially coming"

KM Wilsher said: Could it be a time in the past or future when all will go dark for America. Will we know what is coming, what hit us? Or could it be a bad judgement call by our country?

Kat Heckenbach said: "...the title conveys the image of dark times for America."

Robert Treskillard said: "Sounds like dark times for America ... which implies that your premise somehow has the whole country endangered"

Philomath said: "my first reaction was 'America's darkest hour"

Okay, there were lots of other comments with great feedback, but the above responses get the point across. Interestingly, the fact that my first novel was sci-fi left some confusion stirring in the air. I got a lot of comments saying that American Midnight doesn't sound like a sci-fi novel. Well, it isn't.

Here's a short short teaser of what American Midnight really is:

It's Tania Peter's senior year of high school, and she's turning her back on God, and her parents faith. She has every reason to. Her mother's tragic death is proof to her that if God exists at all, He doesn't care. Besides, her brothers are falling to pieces around her and her father, the pastor of a church, has grown distant in her life. Her senior brings with it new heart wrenching pain when her boyfriend is caught cheating.
The only place Tania finds healing is in a dangerous political movement sweeping the country, especially the youth. Certain leaders within the movement find Tania's intelligence and and enthusiasm just what they want and make plans for her to become their poster girl, but as the true intentions of the movement come to a head and her father's church finds itself falling under extreme government persecution, Tania is forced to confront her faith once again, as well as face the darker side of the group she's grown so close to, even though it could cost her everything.

Well, I hope that intrigued you at least a little...I still got to work on how to give a good punchy sell line for the book.

I'll have some cover art for you hopefully sometime in October!! It's going to rock.

A quick update on my writing adventures!!

Hey friends! I took this week off of work to finish the edits on American Midnight. I'm spending twelve hours a day minimum on finishing our edits off...me and Mike are going to enjoy a long need break once this is done.

We've been spending 20 to 30 hours a week on the novel since Mid July, and that's on top of our 40 hour work week. But this weeks a marathon!

All this to say, I'm going to spill the beans about American Midnight sometime next week. And I'll be able to give some feedback to all your GREAT comments that you left in my previous post.

For anyone who hasn't weighed in on my previous post, it's still not to late!

Alright, that's all for now...back to writing!!!

I need your imput please!

A second book is due out from yours truly in 2010!!! Whoohoo! (more details coming soon!)

I want to enlist your help in deciding on the title of my new book (co-written with Mike Lynch).


We scrapped our old title, and came up with this one.

"American Midnight"

What do you think? Without the cover, or without even knowing the genre, what does that title, "American Midnight," tell you about the story? What words come to mind?

We want to make sure it conveys the ideas of the story in and of itself. Hopefully later this month I'll have some cover art for you, but until then, what do you think of the title???