Gathering Blue - Lois Lowry

The kids and I just finished this novel, the second in a Lois Lowry trilogy. If you've been reading my reviews for a couple of months, you know that we accidentally read the books out of order, reading Messenger (the third installment) first, and The Giver (the first installment) second. This was not a critical error, but one I probably would advise against if you can help it.

In this installment, we are introduced to Kira. Her mother has recently died, and her father was killed by "beasts" from the woods before she was born. She lives in a filthy village where people are angry at each other, fight and curse constantly, beat their children and look out for number one. Immediately after her mother's death, a nasty village woman tries to confiscate Kira's hut and have her driven out of town because of a lame leg that she has had since birth. A trial is held to resolve the dispute, and much to Kira's surprise, is taken in by the elders of the community, given food, shelter, and a very important job. Because of her skills as a seamstress, she is to mend one of the most holy objects in town...the Singer's Robe. Once a year, a Gathering is held for the town, where the esteemed Singer sings the history of the world, which is also sewn into the robe as pictures. We learn that Earth has gone through an Armageddon-like destruction and is currently going through a re-building process.

Kira has a few friends around town, namely the dirty, scrappy, semi-feral but infectiously happy Matt (who we meet again in Messenger) and Thomas, who is also kept by the town's elders to maintain the carvings in the Singer's Staff. They discover a small child, who is being held in a locked room downstairs from Kira and Thomas, who is being groomed to be the next Singer. Kira is disturbed by the child's imprisonment, and its frequent weeping, and starts to question whether everything is as it seems. But when Matt runs away, and brings back a visitor as a "giftie" to Kira, she receives some shocking information that will change her life forever.

Of the three Lowry books in this trilogy, I probably liked this one the least. I didn't connect with the characters of Kira and Thomas, and the plot was a little slow. On the other hand, we thoroughly loved the character of Matt, and probably felt closer to him because of our awareness of his role in Messenger. The kids would giggle every time I read his lines, with his bad grammar and mischievous spirit. This book is, however, critical to the overall plot of the trilogy, and is the bridge between The Giver and Messenger. As a package, the three books are amazing...magical, disturbing, and enlightening. It provides almost a suggestion of what society could be like, if we had to start all over again. It sends a chill or two down my spine. Let's see what Emma thought...



Emma's take: I really liked this book, probably even more than The Giver. I found The Giver to be disturbing and scary in places, and Gathering Blue was not. Like my mom, I did not feel like there was much in the descriptions that made me really feel close to Thomas or Kira, but I had alot of fun with Matt. The village in Gathering Blue was more realistic than in The Giver also. I'm not sure all kids would like the trilogy, but my brother and I did.

Number the Stars - Lois Lowry (audio)

Yes, I know. We have been on quite a Lois Lowry kick here lately, primarily because my kids can't get enough. The extra bonus for me with this novel is that it qualifies for my WWII Reading Challenge, which has been unintentionally ignored for the last couple of months.

"Number the Stars", a Newberry winner, is a different type of Lois Lowry story than we have been reading. While "Gossamer", "The Giver" and "Messenger" were fantasy-ish, this novel is good, old-fashioned historical fiction. The setting is Nazi-occupied Denmark. Our protagonist, Anne Marie Johansen, is a normal 10 year old who desires to win the running race at her school, is often irritated with her chatty little sister, and shares everything with her best friend Ellen. She is also scared of the soldiers that stand on the street corners and try to intimidate them, and longs for life's luxuries long since gone...butter, meat, sweets. When the Germans turn up the heat and start to "relocate" the Danish Jews, Anne Marie's family and friends join the resistance in order to save Anne Marie's best friend, Ellen and her family. Anne Marie quickly learns what it means to be brave, and to defend the freedom and lives of those you love.

I know I will sound like a broken record, but Lowry's stories are something very special. They have a touch of magic, a touch of whimsy, and a touch of unflinching stone-cold reality. Lowry isn't afraid to unveil a bit of brutality, death or prejudice, which makes us all a little bit afraid of what is going to happen in each chapter of her books. At one point in this story, while we were listening in the car, I heard my 11 year old whisper to my 9 year old, "I'm scared". Her stories are so multi-layered, that if you take the time to slowly digest the words, and allow yourself to sort of nestle down in them, you find things you didn't know were there at first blush. Here is what Lowry's #1 fan has to say!

Ryan's take: This book really showed me the cruelty of the Nazis in WWII, especially from a kid's perspective, and made me feel scared and sad. But I still liked it! Mom says this type of story is called historical fiction, and I like it because you can learn about the past in a more interesting way than reading my Social Studies book. My favorite part of the story is when the members of the resistance fool the Nazis when they try to smuggle the Jews out of Denmark.

"The Giver" by Lois Lowry (audio) with a guest post by Ryan

First we read "Gossamer" by Lois Lowry, and fell in love. I quickly snapped up "Messenger", which I found out was the third in a series of three Lowry books (and the kids stopped listening to because they didn't like the narrator!). Did it matter that I read it out of order? I'm finding that perhaps it did. The Giver is the first of the series, and is a Newberry winner, and the kids and I excitedly started listening to it in the car. We found ourselves sitting in the driveway listening to it when we got home, not willing to turn it off. This book blew us all away.

Jonas is an 11-year-old who lives in a perfect world. There are rules of course, all designed to maintain "sameness". Everyone is assigned a job at the age of 12, one that is a perfect fit to each individual, emotionally and physically. Emotions, such as love, passion, anger and hate are supressed by taking pills. Designated women bear all the children for the community. The babies are nurtured in a loving, institutional environment, and in time, are assigned to a family. All families can have one female child and one male child. Once someone grows old and cannot work anymore, they are cared for in a loving, institutional environment, and then eventually "released". If someone breaks the rules too many times, they are "released". There is no war. There is no hunger. There is no prejudice. There are also no animals, no sun, no rain, no snow, no colors, no choices. But the good people of the community don't really know what they are missing, because they've never had it to begin with.

At the Ceremony of the 12's, Jonas receives his life's assignment...the Receiver of the Memories. Apparently, this is a very honored role, but nobody really knows exactly what it means or what is required. Jonas begins to meet with The Giver, who is the current Receiver of the Memories, for his required training and ultimately the passing of the baton. The Giver explains to Jonas that with the job brings great burden. He explains that soon, memories from back and back and back will be transfered to him. These memories will give Jonas great wisdom, which will be used to advise the elders in the decision-making for the community. Jonas begins to receive wonderful memories from The Giver...of Christmas, of sledding, of Grandparents...things he has never known. He also receives memories of broken bones, of hunger, parental abuse, war and death. He receives chilling insight to the way things really work in the community. Jonas begins to question everything he has known to be true. Is it better to live in a sterile environment without choices where you are safe, and is this even to be considered living? Who has the right to enforce such a thing? Jonas decides that his humanity is too big a price to pay, and takes his fate into his own hands.

I find it difficult to find words to explain how thought-provoking Lowry's books are. Her books can be interpreted in so many different ways, and provide excellent mental exercise for kids and adults alike. This one, in particular, brings to mind questions of governmental control, communism, and even the importance of one's individuality. The end of the book is very ambiguous, with some open-ended questions. Some that were answered by "Messenger". My son, who blew me off when I was listening to Messenger, ran out and got it from the school library, and read it about a day. He reminded me of a few things that I had forgotten, and we quickly linked the two books. (This is the child that hates to read because he can't sit still, so I can't tell you how proud this makes me.) Here is what Ryan had to say:

This was a very well-written book by one of my new favorite authors. I couldn't stop thinking about the book, and I couldn't wait to get in the car and start listening to it again. Many of the parts were disturbing, especially near the end, but I liked that. It didn't scare me, and it made me think. Even though Jonas' community is perfect, I don't think I would like it at all. I can't wait to read "Gathering Blue", the next book in the series.

"Messenger" by Lois Lowry (audio)

My kids and I enjoyed Lois Lowry's "Gossamer" so thoroughly, I decided to order more of her works from the library. My original intent was to get audio that I could listen to with my kids in the car, and have them assist me in my posts. Of several library orders, I received "Messenger" first. We got through about 10 minutes, and the narrator lulled them into boredom and they switched on a Lord of the Rings movie. So I'm on my own. I also learned, after I'd listened to the entire book, that it is the third in a trilogy, which makes me uncomfortable. I like order! I suppose I will find out when I read the first two of the series whether this was a bad move or not...

Matty, our protagonist, is a teenage orphan who has been adopted by a blind man named "Seer", and on a larger scale, adopted by "Village". Village is a tight, isolated community that takes in the wayward, the injured and the lost souls, and nurtures them to become a contributing citizen.

Many people in Village have gifts. Matty's is the ability to heal with his touch, and is conflicted as to how and when the gift should be used. Seer can see into the past. Leader, Village's President if you will, can see into the future.

Village is guarded by Forest, which seems to decide who can come and go. Most are not allowed to go, lest they be strangled by the vines covering Forest floor. It's all just a bit creepy, like "The Ruins" meets "The Village" meets some cultish sect.

Matty notices that the kind people of Village are starting to change, for the worse. Normally patient and giving, they have become intolerant, rude and selfish. They have voted to build a wall and keep out all newcomers because they no longer want to share their resources. He learns that the people of Village are meeting regularly, and "trading" their souls (with someone I would liken to the devil) for their heart's desire...a gaming machine, furniture, or the love of an unattainable widow next door. At the same time, Forest has become dense, wild and decaying. Matty must travel through Forest to find Seer's daughter, who lives in the next village, and bring her to her father before Village closes its doors on outsiders forever. The question is whether Forest will allow this to happen.

Although this book was not as delightful (I think this is probably the best word to use) as Gossamer, it was very engaging and thought-provoking. I am beginning to see that Lowry's books are full of parables and symbols with endless possibilities. This story could be about staying true to ourselves, about resisting materialism, about realizing our inner potential, or even about Jesus. Lowry's stories truly provide wonderful talking points for the Young Adult crowd, and are still entertaining for us old folks. As I said earlier, the narrator had a voice that varied little from character to character and almost lulled you into a nap, which I was able to get past because of the engaging story. But he lost my kids, which is unfortunate because I think they would have loved the story as much as I. I may need to have them try the book version and see how that goes. My next Lois Lowry selection will be The Giver, both in book and audio form. Stay tuned!

"Gossamer" by Lois Lowry (audio) featuring a guest post from Emma

Recently, I was inspired by Anna at Diary of an Eccentric to start to read some YA fiction with my daughter, Emma, and let her hone her writing and analysis skills in a co-post with me. (Anna does this occasionally with her daughter as well). What a great way to bond with your kids and share the love of reading with them! YA is not necessarily my genre, but there are so many bloggers out there reviewing these types of books, I knew we could easily find something entertaining to both of us. Gossamer was one of those books on which I'd seen several glowing reviews. I ordered the book for Emma and the audio book for me from the library. Emma finished the book in two days, and I'd started listening to the audio in the car on the way to school and back (the Outlander Series has to wait until the kiddies are NOT in the car). Emma loved the book so much, she wanted to listen to the audio with me, and surprisingly my very boyish 9 year old boy became enraptured as well. Wonders never cease!

Gossamer is a magical tale about little creatures (like little butterflies or fairies in my mind's eye) that bestow dreams to humans. With a light, feathery touch they extract memory fragments from items in the humans' homes, and use them to transfer these memories back into the subsonscious as dreams while the humans sleep. My son Ryan commented that he thinks they come from God (which of course made me cry.) Adversely, there are also Sinisteeds, which are dark, snorting, aggressive horse-like creatures that attack the human psyche with nightmares.

Littlest One is a dream-giver-in-training, and is a lively, curious sweetheart. She is also very talented at bestowing dreams, and at her gentle "Gossamer" touch in gathering fragments. She and her mentor, Thin Elderly, become aware of a disturbing situation occuring at one of their "clients". A lonely, elderly woman is fostering an angry little boy who has been grossly abused by his father. Because the little boy is vulnerable, the Sinisteeds attempt to permanently damage the boy with vicious nightmares. A battle ensues between the dream-givers and the Sinisteeds for the boy's soul.

The definition of Gossamer is something fragile and delicate. Everything about this book is fragile and delicate, and is perfectly named. It is filled with a magical, twinkling, child-like wonder. It is beautiful and pure in its example of hope, and I don't think I've read anything quite like it. Despite everything I have said so far, however, I must warn you that the scenes of abuse imposed on the boy are troubling and heartbreaking. But patience and love prevails, as it should. I cried at the end. I would recommend it to young and old.


Emma's take: I really enjoyed Gossamer, although it was a little confusing for me at points. One thing I did like is all of the imagination used to write the book. It made me feel like I was really there. I thought that John's (the angry boy) behaviour was really mean, and it made me feel both angry and sad inside. I loved the character Littlest One. The way she is always talking and curious is so cute. This story made me want to read more from the same author. (Note from mom: The Giver is next.) I would rate this book 5 out of 5 stars.