Book Review: Son

In the summer of 2013, I reread The Giver.  I was moving from first grade to sixth, and I had discovered that The Giver was the first in a series of books.  So I ordered them through a Scholastic Book Order and read the first three books: The Giver, Gathering Blue, and Messenger.  There was a fourth book that I hadn't been able to get my hands on yet, called Son.  (This was especially strange because it was just released in 2012.  This one was available in a book order this year, and I snagged it right away!

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Synopsis from Goodreads.com:

They called her Water Claire. When she washed up on their shore, no one knew that she came from a society where emotions and colors didn’t exist. That she had become a Vessel at age thirteen. That she had carried a Product at age fourteen. That it had been stolen from her body. Claire had a son. But what became of him she never knew. What was his name? Was he even alive? She was supposed to forget him, but that was impossible. Now Claire will stop at nothing to find her child, even if it means making an unimaginable sacrifice. 

Son thrusts readers once again into the chilling world of the Newbery Medal winning book, The Giver, as well as Gathering Blue and Messengerwhere a new hero emerges. In this thrilling series finale, the startling and long-awaited conclusion to Lois Lowry’s epic tale culminates in a final clash between good and evil.

My thoughts:

I really enjoyed this conclusion to the series.  As I mentioned in my review of the first three books, the books seem to have nothing to do with each other.  Messenger ties together the first two a little, but there are still so many unanswered questions.  Son finally brings a conclusion to the entire series.  It actually begins from Claire's perspective during the time that The Giver took place.  That was probably my favorite part of the story.  Seeing another perspective of what took place while things were changing in Jonas' life was really interesting.  The middle part of the book was pretty strange, and it is mysterious how and why Claire ends up in this new seemingly unfuturistic community.  Lowry never really answers that, but the end does bring about a satisfying conclusion.  

I gave it 5/5 Stars!

If you have read The Giver and the other books, I highly recommend that you bring yourself closure by reading Son.