Customer Reviews
Could have been longer and more developed 
2008-04-15
I read The Giver when I was a lot younger and it left such an impression on me that I decided, at the age of 26, to venture into the young adult section to buy it. I was thrilled to find out that there were two sequels to the novel and quickly got Gathering Blue and Messenger. I loved Gathering Blue, but Messenger left me somehow wanting more.
**** SPOILERS****
I think the biggest problem with the novel is that none of the themes seem well developed. The concept that Lowry introduces in this novel that people can trade something from themselves to receive things they desire is not expanded upon at all. This makes the ending seem cheap when she throws in that Matty exchanges himself to heal his world. I wish that the novel went into more detail, but because Matty is vague on the details, we are left in the dark.
I was also excited initially to think that we would be able to see Thomas and Jo again (two of my favorite characters from Gathering Blue). Sadly, Thomas is only mentioned in passing and Jo is not mentioned at all. How did Kira end up living in the hut that Annabella lived in? What happened to her job of finishing the Singer's robe? Was it done in six years? What happened with Jo? Was she chained up and held in servitude like the last singer? And what suddenly occurred that could cause Kira's world to become better? In Gathering Blue, no one helped anyone else, girls were not allowed to learn, etc. What made the change? The world of Gathering Blue worked because it was in such stark contrast to the world of the Giver (Utopian vs. dystopia). Was Kira's world suddenly becoming more like Village and Jonas' childhood home?
All-in-all, I feel that this novel was WAY too rushed. I think that Lois Lowry could have taken more time to fill in some holes that were going to leave the readers wanting more. She did a poor job of tying together the first two novels with this one. It seems as though she just plugged the characters from the first two novels into a storyline and hoped that they would be sufficient.
A normal kind of book from Lois Lowry 2008-01-30
I must admit that I have never liked Lois Lowry. My first introduction to her was though "The Giver", then "Gathering Blue". "Number the Stars" I read for school (probably the best I read) and then, on a friend's advise, I read "Messenger". I will not be reading anther Lois Lowry book I fear for a long, long time.
My biggest complaint, for all her books, is the endings. Messenger did not disappoint me. Her ending, just like them all, just ended. It left less confusion than it did with "Giver" or "Gathering Blue" but still, it left many questions that cannot, by the reader, be answered. Questions about the Forest in particular, and Matty. Personally, I wanted the reasoning behind what was happening explained, and not just by someone else who is guessing just as much as I am. Never does she explain what was going on with the Forest and how the conflict was fully resolved by what was done. (I know, I am being vague and I'm sorry but I am trying not to give anything away.) To be honest, the whole story in the book could be repeated in just a few years.
Another thing I didn't like, again dealing with the ending, although she did this through out the book, it was noticed the most in the ending, is she would rush through a section, giving very little details. This ends up making the reader, especially a fast one, the feeling of watching a movie on slow fast-forward. When I was done, I felt I had to stop and digest everything, which took away the happy feeling that should come at the end of a book.
Things I did like about this book:
1) What happened with Matty. I liked Matty, although I could not remember much of what happened to him in "Gathering Blue". (which I haven't read in over three years.)
2) Leader. However, that could be because I have had a lot of leadership type, aloof, blue-eyed, dark-haired men in my readings and generally assume that if they are on the good side they are cool. I don't know how much I can say that he related to Jonas but, by himself, I liked him.
3) I think the plot had potential, if developed enough.
However, in spite of the few good points, I think that because of the dangling ending(s), I would never recommend this book, or any other of her works, to anyone looking for a good read. IF you like Lois Lowry and her endings, you might like it as a stand-alone or sequel to Gathering Blue, but other than that, there are many other books that are worthwhile reading out there before this one.
very good book, but implausable 
2008-01-28
I read this book right after I finished The gathering Blue, and The Giver before that. I had thought that The Giver was breathtakeing (it brought me to tears), and that Gathering Blue was beautiful because both of those plots seemed plusable in the near future. While Messenger had a good begining (a Utopian society where the disabled and different seek refuge), I thought that portraying the Forest with a menacing personality and not giving a reason for it left a loophole, and there should have been more exlanation behind the Trading people did. Where they trading away their souls for what they needed, or were they trading away love? I also thought it was uneccessary to introduce magic into this book when it wasn't in the previous two books. The way I had rationalized Jonas's ability to "see beyond" was that he became aware of things that nobody in his origional community were ever taught to be aware of (like color. If you don't teach a child the concept and differences of color, is he aware of it?), and that Kira's gift with weaving was brought about by imagination and creatifity. When I read that Matty had talent as a healer, I was hoping that he had an intuition about the body & the healing nature of plants, not some inner magic that was never explained. I also thought the romance between Kira & Jonus was rushed & maybe uneccessary for this plot. All in all, I was dissappointed in this book after reading the other two
Avoid if you are over the age of 10 
2008-01-22
This was an insipid rehashing of the mythical story of Jesus Christ. Matty, who was my favorite character from Gathering Blue (a vastly superior book)is taking the Jesus Christ pose as he makes the ultimate sacrifice by saving humankind and the world itself in one fell swoop by dying. Allusions to Christ abound throughout the book until the whole process becomes trite and silly. As we are all familiar with this storyline it was a tedious read with an ending I fully expected. Try "The Giver" if you are interested in Lowry's work, as it's a far more thoughtfully developed and mature work not stunted by Lowry's unfortunate need to proselytize.
The Ideal home changes 
2007-11-18
Identified as the "Companion": to Newbery-winning "The Giver" and "Gathering Blue", I picked up Messenger with high expectations. The other two were terrific, stunning in their own ways. I wasn't disappointed. Lowry's created world in which the three villages of the three stories exist is clever and well developed. To this adult reader, although it's never stated, it seems these villages rise from the post-Apocalypse world. As in the other two, Lowry creates the finest of reading, a youthful main character worth caring about greatly (Matty here after Jonas and Kira in the other two books), a believable world like ours in its variety of people, but including such things as individuals with powers beyond normal, and a compelling story line with strong changes between good and bad circumstances. Lowry is a master of mood, particularly foreboding or uncertainty in the environment. Those moods both play strong roles here. The combination of strong character development, creative and credible setting, and the establishing of the mood of people and situations is a powerful one. They make Messenger terrific before you get to its moving and emotionally powerful conclusion. Messenger is recommended highly, even to adults, but with the note that, while it stands alone well, reading the three in the order The Giver, Gathering Blue, and Messenger will bring some events or characters into a better light. Great.
Not what I expected 2007-10-30
For the past six years, Matty has lived in Village and flourished under the guidance of Seer, a blind man, known for his special sight. Village was a place that welcomed newcomers, but something sinister has seeped into Village and the people have voted to close it to outsiders. Matty has been invaluable as a messenger. Now he must make one last journey through the treacherous forest with his only weapon, a power he unexpectedly discovers within himself.
From the Trade Paperback edition.
I'll pretend it never happened 2007-08-31
I don't think I'm alone in saying that the ending of "The Giver" was perfect. It left the reader with just the air of mystery and made it possible for ANYTHING to be possible.
So why, so many years later, are we thrust with a less-than-satisfactory story in place of our imaginations? "Messenger" seemed to me first and foremost a sequel to the interesting "Gathering Blue". "Gathering Blue" had little if anything in common with "The Giver". I didn't really associate the two with each other, yet here Lowry clearly draws a line between the two, one I'd wished she'd have left alone.
"Messenger" is not a bad book. It's just not particularly good either. It was simple, the plot absolutely calm, and there just wasn't a spark. If it was just a slightly bland story then it might be okay, but by trying to tie "The Giver" in with this book, Lowry has made it difficult to accept this book.
"Messenger" does have some positive sides to it. It was very fun to see Matty again, though I'll admit that he seemed a bit more bland here than he did in "Gathering Blue". He lacked fire and emotion, like he'd been tamed and dumbed down. He was more fun as a crazy, spirited kid, but it was still nice to see him again. It's also a thoroughly readable book, written in very simple language that means that just about any age group can read this and understand it.
In the end, though, I'm left with the feeling that Lowry has ruined something for me. I liked how all these years I was allowed to decide what happened at the end of "The Giver". Instead, Lowry has decided for me, and I'd really prefer she wouldn't. I'll pretend it never happened.
For fans who don't mind that "The Giver" is given an ending and really liked "Gathering Blue", "Messenger" may be a good book for you, especially if you like a simple style. There are aspects to this story that make it very good. On the other hand, if you loved "The Giver" as much as I did, I'd suggest avoiding this book and just accepting "Gathering Blue" as a standalone.
Messenger 
2007-06-30
This book continue with the character Matty and Seer at a villiage that accept everyone no matter what the disability. People in the village start acting differenecely and Matty can't figure out why. The people want to close the doors of village. Matty wants to hurry and get his name, but Leader tells him he has to wait. Matty has a speical gift and does something really special for the people. Read the book to find out what Matty does. this would be a good book to read for the content areas, you could study aobut other cultures, economics system, health issues and you can always write about diffence subjects in the story.
The Exciting Book I Read 2007-06-04
The book I read was Messenger. The author of this book is Lois Lowry. This book is about a young boy named Matty taking mail to people from forest. This story takes place in the past. Matty called himself a name. I am not going to tell you that name because I will ruin the story for you. The plot of this story is that this boy wandered into a forest and found something he did not know existed. The author did a good job showing how Matty helps people through forest. For example Matty helped seer's daughter go through forest.
I would recommend this to many middle schools. This book is a great book for a class to read. Over the last paragraph I told you some reasons I liked this book. Maybe if you read this book you will feel the same as me.
The Madness of Matty the Messenger 2007-06-04
I read the book Messenger by Lois Lowry. A young boy named Matty is living with an old man named Seer, in a utopian society, in our future. Everyone in this village is named by their gifts, or their powers. Some can see beyond like a man named leader, or some have other powers. The book is about a man named Mentor who wants to close the village to new comers. Seer's crippled daughter named Kira is living on the other side of a dark and fierce forest. She promised she would come live with them, but with the village closing so fast, she might not make it. Matty set out to go bring Kira home, and with their powers they are fighting the crewel forest to get back. The forest is trying to kill them both as it killed many others. They're going as fast as they can, but it might be too late.
I believe the theme of the story was that things may get hard or tough, your challenges may be unbearable, but in the end your friends, family, and people who care about you really matter, and everything is worth it in the end. I think people who like fiction and adventures should read this book because I wanted to keep turning the page. I really enjoyed the suspense. I believe that Messenger was an excellent book!
