1994: All in the Family

Lois Lowry accepts the Newbery Medal for The Giver

After receiving the prestigious Newbery Medal for her children’s science-fiction book The Giver, author Lois Lowry gave a speech to try to answer questions about why she’d written a children’s book that includes some decidedly adult concepts. Her protagonist, Jonas, lives in an imaginary world in which Lowry “got rid of all the things I fear and dislike; all the violence, poverty, prejudice and injustice.” Yet in this seemingly perfect world, citizens know nothing of the pleasure of sunshine on their faces or the comfort of being part of a family.

Lesson learned? “We can’t live in a walled world… where we are all the same and feel safe.” Lowry uses the book to focus on the theme of family responsibility and the role parents lead in supporting their children from birth through adulthood.