Putting it all together

Many readers are frustrated when they finish The Giver, they want to know exactly what happened to Jonas.  Then they become even more angry when they read Gathering Blue because they spend the whole book wondering what happened to Jonas so they can't appreciate how good the story is (I'll admit this may have happened to me).  Finally in Messenger you get some idea of what happened to Jonas but what about baby Gabriel?

Everything comes together in Son.  Here we see exactly how Jonas and Gabriel formed a life in the new community.  We go back to Jonas' original community and we learn so much more about Gabe, and about his birth mother.  We see yet another community, different still from the three others we have seen so far, and we see the return of trademaster.

Son is the longest book in the series and it opens with the story of Claire.  It seems odd to begin the final book in The Giver Quartet with a brand new character and a seeming step backwards (for we are brought back to Jonas' original community-a place we haven't heard about at all since the Giver). But once you start reading you realize what a masterful writer Lois Lowry truly is.

The more you read, the more pieces fall into place.  You see connection after connection, but it's not done in a "I really just need to wrap this all up" kind of way.  Instead, the story of Claire seamlessly delivers the ending you have been yearning for since the cliffhanger of The Giver.   I am not exaggerating at all when I say Son was the most satisfying ending to a series I have ever read.  It was everything I had been waiting for.

You could probably already guess this, but I want to put it out there so there is no question in anybody's mind.  If you are looking for something to read, I recommend The Giver Quartet without reservation.  Whatever kind of books you typically read and whatever level of reader you are, this book will have an impact on you and it is most definitely worth your time.

Resolution...that's kids stuff