In Jonas' world, there is no pain, no conflict, no poverty or injustice. Everything, including the work you will do for the rest of your life, is carefully planned out and controlled. On his twelfth birthday, Jonas, along with all the other twelve-year-olds, is assigned his life role in the community by the Elders: apprentice to the Giver. It's not what he expected. He's never even heard of the Giver, but as he learns under this mysterious man who keeps the history, he begins to receive memories of another place and time, and his perceptions of his perfect world start to radically alter. This gripping tale, set in a not-so-distant-future time, raises provactive issues for discussion and has a dramatic ending that will leave readers clamoring to offer their own interpretations of events. (Ages 10-14)