Messenger: A Haunting Dystopian Adventure About Sacrifice, Power, and a Divided Village (Giver Quartet, 3)
The third book in Lois Lowry's Giver Quartet, which began with the bestselling and Newbery Medal-winning The Giver.
Trouble is brewing in Village. Once a utopian community that prided itself on welcoming strangers, Village will soon be cut off to all outsiders.
As one of the few able to traverse the forbidding Forest, Matty must deliver the message of Village’s closing and try to convince Seer’s daughter Kira to return with him before it’s too late. But Forest is now hostile to Matty as well. Now he must risk everything to fight his way through it, armed only with an emerging power he cannot yet explain or understand.
"Told in simple, evocative prose, this companion to The Giver and Gathering Blue can stand on its own as a powerful tale of great beauty." —Kirkus (starred review)
Messenger is the masterful third novel in Lois Lowry’s Giver Quartet, which includes The Giver, Gathering Blue, and Son.
BUY THE BOOK
Community Reviews
I was actually quite surprised just how quick of a read this is. Yes, it’s a short book in general, but even so, the plot moves so quickly that I didn’t realize how much had actually happened over the course of the story. What’s more, I don’t think I realized what exactly the arc of the story was until closer to the end, which meant I kept expecting a longer time line than what occurs in the book.
Subtlety
The real kicker and the explanation behind why you don’t realize the fast pace of the plot is the subtlety of the plot elements. I was shocked when I realized where the book was going to end because I kept expecting something more, something bigger, something dramatic to happen, but it didn’t. And it didn’t need to happen. The subtlety is honestly what makes this story.
Tie-In
I don’t want to say too much, but I did not expect the way Messenger ties back into The Giver and Gathering Blue. It was definitely an ‘aha’ moment and it was so perfect for this particular story. I absolutely loved this piece of the story and the way it approaches the tie-in. Oo! Secrets. Secrets! :p
See why thousands of readers are using Bookclubs to stay connected.