Soooo, I'm pretty sure every 8th grader last year read The Giver. Well, I kind of liked it, and the movie was good, so I decided to continue the series. I just started reading Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry, and so far, it's really good. It takes place in a village were people have to be strong and healthy to stay and survive. Yet, the main character Kira has a bad leg; which she has had her whole life. They were going to get rid of her as an infant, but her mother kept her safe. When her mother dies, she has to face the Council who decides to let her stay. Kira has a gift. Because of that gift, she gets to live in a nice home and she has to do something that no one else can do. That's about as far in the book as I've come along.
What I really like about this book is how intriguing the book is. It's suspenseful, has a good plot, and it is very descriptive. At the beginning of the book it says," Kira felt the aloneness, the uncertainty, and a great sadness. This had been her mother, the warm and vital woman whose name had been Katrina." (Lowry 1). For me, that really helped me visualize what Kira felt, making the book interesting and maybe even a little interactive. These kinds of descriptions throughout the book helps to make the book lively and less dull. In my opinion, descriptions are key when it comes to books/stories. It's what makes me enjoy a book and makes me want to read it.
The book is also suspenseful; especially at the end of the chapters. At the end of chapter 2, it says, " She did not understand how the knowledge had come to her. But it was there, in her fingertips, and now they trembled with the eagerness to start. If only she was allowed to stay." (Lowry 17). See What I mean? If a book doesn't have any suspense, I don't enjoy it. But, not only does this book have suspense within the book, but within the entire series. The 1st book, The Giver, was about Jonas. This book Gathering Blue is about Kira. So far, there is no connection between them. It's driving me CRAZY. There is no way that Jonas' story could have just...ended. I hope to know what happens to him sometime later in the series.
