In a post-apocalyptic world, everything is geared towards sameness and decisions are made for everyone. From the children parents "receive" to the names they are given, to the jobs they will hold. Til when they are "realeased". Only Jonas is special. He is to be the new "Receiver" of memories. He will hold all the pain of the past for the community. The Giver is the current receiveer who passes all these memories to him. Only this time, they decide it is time for the community to learn pain and to change. So Jonas will seek a new future for himself. 
 This was a fantastic book. Jonas' experiences and thoughts are believeable and I was sucked into the story enjoying it all. And not to mention - thinking about it a lot. Look forward to the next in the series.