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mandareads222's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, Confinement, and Body shaming
Moderate: Grief, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, and Violence
Minor: Death, Murder, Animal death, Child death, and Physical abuse
lawbooks600's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Representation: Character with a physical disability
Score: Six points out of ten.
One year ago, I read the first instalment of The Giver Quartet, The Giver--an outstanding read. I hoped the fictional composition after The Giver, Gathering Blue, would be at the same standard as the former. When I glanced at the blurb, it looked intriguing, but the low ratings warned me not to read it. When I read and finished Gathering Blue, I was underwhelmed and felt that it wasn't as good as The Giver.
It starts with the first person I see, Kira, whose last name remains undisclosed, arriving on an unknown location. Surprisingly, there are people living there, but they forced Kira to battle and fight to the death, much to her detriment as she has a disability. The plot twists as Kira does not battle and instead she integrates into the community. After the opening pages, nothing much happens, as all I see is Kira living her new life in a place I don't know the location of. The worldbuilding is worse in Gathering Blue than The Giver as there is no explanation for why everything is the way it is. What is blue? How does the society function? Those are questions the author did not answer. The conclusion petered out Gathering Blue. I'm so dissatisfied.
Score: Six points out of ten.
One year ago, I read the first instalment of The Giver Quartet, The Giver--an outstanding read. I hoped the fictional composition after The Giver, Gathering Blue, would be at the same standard as the former. When I glanced at the blurb, it looked intriguing, but the low ratings warned me not to read it. When I read and finished Gathering Blue, I was underwhelmed and felt that it wasn't as good as The Giver.
It starts with the first person I see, Kira, whose last name remains undisclosed, arriving on an unknown location. Surprisingly, there are people living there, but they forced Kira to battle and fight to the death, much to her detriment as she has a disability. The plot twists as Kira does not battle and instead she integrates into the community. After the opening pages, nothing much happens, as all I see is Kira living her new life in a place I don't know the location of. The worldbuilding is worse in Gathering Blue than The Giver as there is no explanation for why everything is the way it is. What is blue? How does the society function? Those are questions the author did not answer. The conclusion petered out Gathering Blue. I'm so dissatisfied.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Ableism, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Bullying, and Death
Full trigger warnings: Ableism, bullying, physical assault, murder, implied death or disappearance of parents, suicidal thoughtskawaii_rose's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Ableism, Death of parent, and Death
Moderate: Torture
saraellenme's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Ableism, and Death of parent
Moderate: Child abuse
Minor: Kidnapping
cassie7e's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
A beatifully crafted YA book, with so much worldbuilding without being told, culture and politics and relationships we learn by seeing them, and seeing them begin to be challenged in the mind of our main character. And the visual imagery of gathering blue, along with the threads and dyeing process, still captivate my artist brain.
It's been ages since I read this as a kid; either I do not remember or I did not register when I was young just how dark a world the characters live in. Actions that on the surface are single unpleasant moments paint a deeper, oppressive undercurrent that my adult self could pick up on and interpret long before the book and character explain.
It's been ages since I read this as a kid; either I do not remember or I did not register when I was young just how dark a world the characters live in. Actions that on the surface are single unpleasant moments paint a deeper, oppressive undercurrent that my adult self could pick up on and interpret long before the book and character explain.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism
Moderate: Death of parent, Abandonment, Child death, Confinement, Murder, Violence, Child abuse, Death, Grief, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, and Misogyny
Minor: Blood and Fire/Fire injury
nortsapa's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
kira my beloved
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Death of parent, Death, Confinement, Child abuse, Child death, and Cannibalism
breedawnwriter's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Overall, this book has a lot of problems for me. I enjoyed the story concept, as well as the end when things started to pick up. However, as a whole, it wasn’t a great read for me.
What I Liked:
-The worldbuilding. I tend to forget that worldbuilding is so much more than just descriptions of the setting. So, I loved how Lowry incorporated elements of the world in the early chapters. She brought the world to life by exploring religion, the societal structure, the setting of the village, and the government. It was all of these elements together that really made me feel like I’d been dropped into a new place.
-The council. I’m biased because my current WIP has a council, but I really loved this bit of the world. It fascinated me, and my only problem was that I wanted more.
-The theme about artists and creating. This made me smile and warmed my heart.
Unfortunately, none of these elements were enough to make me overlook the story’s other issues…
What I Didn’t Like:
-The pacing. This was Gathering Blue’s greatest flaw. The middle is so tediously slow that I almost DNFed it multiple times. The ending was the best part of the story, but it was so rushed and didn’t bring the depth I expected from Lowry’s writing.
-The plot twists. None of them surprised me. I will give Lowry the benefit of the doubt with one of them since I think I accidentally spoiled it for myself vaguely. But, even so, they were too obvious for me to really feel shocked or surprised when they happened.
-The lack of depth with the characters. After the compelling internal conflict with Jonas in The Giver, I expected Kira, Thomas, and Matt to…I don’t know…move me, I guess. I wanted Kira to be bold, to make a stand. I wanted more from her, and the ending only gave a glimpse at what would happen (which I honestly think might have made a better book, but I digress).
In the end, Gathering Blue had potential, but didn’t really work for me.
Content warnings: Abandonment, ableism, blood, bullying, death, death of a parent, grief, and violence.
What I Liked:
-The worldbuilding. I tend to forget that worldbuilding is so much more than just descriptions of the setting. So, I loved how Lowry incorporated elements of the world in the early chapters. She brought the world to life by exploring religion, the societal structure, the setting of the village, and the government. It was all of these elements together that really made me feel like I’d been dropped into a new place.
-The council. I’m biased because my current WIP has a council, but I really loved this bit of the world. It fascinated me, and my only problem was that I wanted more.
-The theme about artists and creating. This made me smile and warmed my heart.
Unfortunately, none of these elements were enough to make me overlook the story’s other issues…
What I Didn’t Like:
-The pacing. This was Gathering Blue’s greatest flaw. The middle is so tediously slow that I almost DNFed it multiple times. The ending was the best part of the story, but it was so rushed and didn’t bring the depth I expected from Lowry’s writing.
-The plot twists. None of them surprised me. I will give Lowry the benefit of the doubt with one of them since I think I accidentally spoiled it for myself vaguely. But, even so, they were too obvious for me to really feel shocked or surprised when they happened.
-The lack of depth with the characters. After the compelling internal conflict with Jonas in The Giver, I expected Kira, Thomas, and Matt to…I don’t know…move me, I guess. I wanted Kira to be bold, to make a stand. I wanted more from her, and the ending only gave a glimpse at what would happen (which I honestly think might have made a better book, but I digress).
In the end, Gathering Blue had potential, but didn’t really work for me.
Content warnings: Abandonment, ableism, blood, bullying, death, death of a parent, grief, and violence.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism
Moderate: Bullying, Grief, and Violence
Minor: Death, Blood, Death of parent, and Abandonment
chrysanthxmum's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism
Moderate: Death, Confinement, Child abuse, Murder, Child death, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Slavery and Sexism
meg_elyse's review
challenging
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Death, and Death of parent
Moderate: Child abuse, Body shaming, Bullying, and Confinement
Minor: Injury/Injury detail and Murder
nytephoenyx's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I liked Gathering Blue quite a bit. It wasn’t a perfect book - it ended abruptly and Kira’s childlike naïvety wore on me… but it was generally an engaging tale that highlighted the worst parts of humanity even in a deceptively uncomplex society. I liked the gifts and how they wove together, and more than anything, I just want to know more.
I’ve learned that Lois Lowry likes to do that, though. Leave the opening up to imagination.
I’ve learned that Lois Lowry likes to do that, though. Leave the opening up to imagination.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Death of parent, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Death, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Animal death
While there’s some less-than desirable terminology used at times, Gathering Blue strongly challenges ableism. There are a few members of the disability community featured prominently and positively in Gathering Blue, including the protagonist.