Thursday, September 8, 2016

Messenger by Lois Lowry

Synopsis:
Strange changes are taking place in Village. Once a utopian community that prided itself on its welcome to new strangers, Village will soon be closed to all outsiders. As one of the few people able to travel through the dangerous Forest, Matty must deliver the message of Village's closing and try to convince Seer's daughter to return with him before it's too late. But Forest has become hostile to Matty as well, and he must risk everything to fight his way through it, armed only with an emerging power he cannot yet explain or understand.
Review by Patrick:

This book is more closely related to Gathering Blue, I thought, than The Giver. Although, to be fair, it had clear links to both stories.


This one seems pretty dark from the beginning. The main character, Matty, seems to have some kind of power. And the town folk are trading things that shouldn't be traded. Well, things get worse, and democracy has it's disadvantages.


The story moves on, and the optimist in me wants everything to turn out okay, but the book just keeps giving out lashes. Note, this is not a child's bed time story. Read this as a mature adult, and think about what it is telling us about ourselves, and our society.


I don't know what to say about this one. It has mystery, tragedy, redemption, and hope. It plays on your emotions, and brings up topics that can be difficult to express. It's good, but geez. I'm giving this one 3.5 stars. Keep reading.