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20 BEST Books Similar to The Giver

Last Updated on November 26, 2023 by Louisa

I absolutely loved reading The Giver by Lois Lowrey since I first read it when I was in high school.

In fact, as I get older, I find I am seeking more books like The Giver that get me thinking differently about the world and questioning my own moral compass.

Despite the fact it was banned in many state schools because of its offensive language, explicit scenes, and sensitive topic of euthanasia, it’s still one of the most highly acclaimed dystopian books.

The Giver has a morally driven storyline, that touches on themes of prejudice, loneliness, and the importance of individuality.

If like me you read The Giver and found it thought-provoking, deeply moving, and captivating. Then you’ll love these other books similar to The Giver.

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Summary of The Giver (No Spoilers!)


Before I go into the best novels like The Giver, let’s quickly recap what happened in the story. Don’t worry, if you haven’t read the whole story yet or it’s still on the top of your reading list, I won’t spill any spoilers here.

It takes place in a futuristic world where society is created equal. There are no crimes and everyone is happy.

Everyone looks the same and everything is chosen for you by The Giver. Everything from the life you live, to your parents, is chosen for you. Free of choice, free of worries, right?

When you reach the age of 12, you are assigned a job which you will train for, for the rest of your life.

Jonas is assigned the job of Memory Keeper. When the world first transitioned over to this new harmonious state, they abandoned all memories of war, pain and suffering. It is Jonas’s job to look after these memories.

The Giver passes memories to Jonas, some of sadness, some of joy, but as Jonas sees more and more memories, he realizes his life is missing something. He feels his life is bland and pointless.

The memories create a more meaningful life for Jonas, and he starts to learn more about prejudice, diversity, and morality. Throughout the book you see Jonas become wiser, more emotional, and more challenging.

As Jonas grows up he witnesses more sensitive topics, and the way he deals with learning more about these topics and grows in maturity is what makes this book so iconic (and ironically, one of the main reasons it was banned in America).

If you love books from dystopian worlds and storylines that have you contemplating life, then The Giver is the right book for you.

Related Reading: The Best Quotes from The Giver


Acclaimed Books Similar to The Giver

Now you know the basic summary of The Giver, you have some idea of what these epic novels will have in store for you.

If it sounds like one for your bookshelf, read on to find out the best acclaimed books similar to The Giver.

1. Never Let Me Go – Kazuo Ishiguro


Nestled away in a pleasant land, the English boarding school Hailsham is isolated from most external influences. The students are kept in an educational bubble, only taught what society wants them to know.

Kathy was one of the students who went through the system and became a young woman. Everything was going as planned until she, along with her friends Ruth and Tommy, chose to venture outside Hailsham’s walls in search of new knowledge.

What they found shocked them – a dirty secret that had been hidden by the school all this while.

This gripping mystery novel with an epic love story shines a light on the arrogance of mankind and makes us ponder about the world we live in today.


2. The Hunger Games – Suzanne Collins


The Hunger Games is possibly one of the most well-known dystopian novels similar to The Giver.

Like The Giver, The Hunger Games series has a dystopian society, but each person is given a number that allocates to a different class.

The Capitol rules over the twelve districts, and each year a boy and girl from each poverty-stricken district are chosen to compete in the Hunger Games; a brutal fight to the death.

As Katniss Everdeen journeys through this trilogy of novels, she faces increasing challenges that test her courage and strength.

If you have only seen the films, don’t miss out on all the extra detail that can only be found in the books. Don’t miss your chance to experience an adventure like no other with Katniss.


3. The Maze Runner – James Dashner


Set in the far away future, a group of teenagers find themselves landed in a giant, stone maze. Their memories have been wiped, and they have no idea where they are or how they got there.

They only know they have to escape the maze.

But it’s not that simple. The maze is only open for a short period each day, so the group has only a short amount of time to find the maze exit before the door is sealed and they are stuck in the maze forever.

Written through the eyes of Thomas, a boy who finds himself in the maze, we learn that every time they enter the maze, a new danger poses threats.

Will Thomas and his friends escape? Will they learn the truth about the maze and how they came to be there?

If you like sci-fi novels similar to The Giver, then you might also like these books like The Maze Runner.


4. The Handmaid’s Tale – Margaret Atwood


The Handmaid’s Tale is an award-winning, New York Times Bestselling novel and a timeless modern classic novel set in Canada.

Set in a dystopian future where environmental disasters cause declining birthrates, a civil war breaks out.

The rise of the Republic of Gilead, a totalitarian regime, enslaves the few remaining fertile women, bound to produce children for one of the Gilead’s commanders – also known as the handmaids.

Offred is one of these handmaids, and this is the story of her life, deprived of seeing her husband and children, living only in memories to get her through each day. This is a dark and suspenseful tale with an eerie twist.


5. Fahrenheit 451 – Ray Bradbury


Fahrenheit 451 is a critically acclaimed dystopian novel about the conflict between free speech and censorship. It follows the story of Guy Montag who lives in an oppressed society.

Books are banned and thinking independently is unheard of. Guy’s job is to burn all the books.

One day, he meets a woman who has a secret stash of literature, and rather than turn them in to be burnt, she would rather be burned along with her books. Shocked, Guy becomes curious.

When Guy starts to defy orders and read instead of burn, he realizes what true freedom feels like.


6. Brave New World – Aldous Huxley


In Aldous Huxley’s futuristic view, society revolves around efficiency and science. From a young age, children are conditioned rather than taught. Relationships are not allowed, as everyone belongs to everyone, in World State.

The world must live by three rules; zero privacy, zero family, zero monogamy.

When the state takes control of powerful technology, including the control of reproduction through medical intervention, there are new challenges at hand. Even happiness is controlled, by the use of a drug called Soma.

But can a world like this really exist? What happens when you fall in love?


7. 1984 – George Orwell


George Orwell’s portrayal of the future, set in 1984 (it was first published in 1949) shows how society is controlled by one heirarchal being called Big Brother.

No one knows who Big Brother is, or what he looks like, but they know how powerful he is.

The ability to choose your own life, or even think your own thoughts, will have you hunted down by the thought police.

Winston is fighting to stay alive and keep his head above water in this repressive society. But can he keep himself together? Big Brother is watching.

Related Reading: Books Like 1984


8. Hatchet – Gary Paulsen


This award-winning Canadian novel tells the story of thirteen-year-old Brian Robeson, who after learning of his mother’s infidelity, is traveling by single-engine plane to visit his father for the first time since the divorce.

When the plane crashes, killing the pilot, the sole survivor is Brian. Alone in the Canadian wilderness with nothing but his clothing, a windbreaker, and the hatchet his mother had given him as a present.

Although first consumed by despair, Brian slowly learns survival skills—how to make a shelter for himself, how to hunt, fish, and forage for food, make a fire, and even finds the courage to start over when a tornado ravages his campsite.

Brian is finally rescued after fifty-four days in the wild, becoming a new man, changed by his need for survival.

Related Reading: Books Like The Hatchet


9. Divergent – Veronica Roth


Divergent by Veronica Roth follows Beatrice Prior in her dystopian Chicago world where people are categorized by distinct personality traits –  Abnegation, Candor, Erudite, Dauntless, and Amity.

Every year, all sixteen-year-olds must choose a faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives.

Beatrice must choose between remaining with her family and being herself, but she cannot have it both ways.

As a result, she renames herself Tris and struggles with her fellow initiates to live out their decision.

They must all work together to survive physical and mental assessments, some of which have disastrous outcomes.

Tris must determine who her true friends are as the onset changes them all.

As exposed to turmoil and growing dispute that threatens to destabilize her seemingly peaceful world, she realizes that her secret may create a do-or-die situation.

View it on:

Apple Books

Related Reading: Books Like Divergent and Hunger Games


10. Cloud Atlas – David Mitchell


Cloud Atlas is a series of six books set in Hawaii, each narrated by a main character in the next chapter.

Although this style of writing can be confusing to some readers, at the time of its publication, it was a style that was completely unheard of and received high praise from critics across the board.

Each character is a soul that has been reincarnated from the previous character.

The term Cloud Atlas refers to the cloud, an ever-changing, always moving entity compared to the Atlas, a fixed point in the world that will always be.


Series of Books Similar to The Giver

If one book just isn’t enough for you, we hear you! Here’s a list of the best book series similar to The Giver.

11. Uglies – Scott Westerfeld


When Tally turns 16, she will undergo an operation to turn her from an ugly to a pretty, where her only role in life is to have fun.

Only her best friend, Shay, isn’t keen on becoming a pretty. When Shay runs away, Tally learns that life amongst the pretty isn’t exactly…well, pretty.

Tally must make a choice. She is on a journey of self-discovery, of eye-opening awakening and self-sacrifice.


12. Gathering Blue – Lois Lowry


Gathering Blue is the next installment by Lois Lowry and was written as a companion book to The Giver.

It is set in the same time period and has similar themes of self-discovery and growth.

It follows the story of Kira, a girl born with a deformed leg. When her mother dies and leaves her an orphan, she must make her way in a society that usually leaves the disabled and weak behind.

This is Kira’s story of navigating through a world of prejudice and injustice.


13. Swipe – Evan Angler


In the futuristic USA, known as American Union, the right to have citizenship does not come from birth, but from a Pledging process.

Pledges are marked with tattoos, are given certain benefits in society. Those who rebel, who deny having the tattoo, must live as vagrants and rely on the Pledges to provide for them.

When thirteen-year-old Logan Langly is due for his Pledge, he is afraid. His sister never returned from her pledge, and he learns that since the day of her death, someone has been watching him…


14. Blindness – Jose Saramago


When nearly everyone in an unnamed city go blind, a social breakdown follows.

The story follows society as each one turns blind, starting with an ophthalmologist and his patients. His wife, however, is immune to the disease-causing blindness.

As more numbers fall to the blindness disease, they are quarantined in an asylum, where living conditions are horrendous. There is a shortage of food, organization and empathy…

As more and more people turn blind, society crumbles – schools, hospitals, government and social services collapse.

How will they survive?


15. When You Reach Me – Rebecca Stead


The story follows a sixth-grader, Miranda, who has the chance to win $20,000 in a game show.

As her single mother and her boyfriend try to prepare her for the show, she starts to receive letters from a homeless man whom she calls “the laughing man” due to his tendency to laugh without cause.

The notes instruct her to predict the future, and as the notes become true, she is intrigued.

Meanwhile, her best friend Sal is being bullied by a boy called Marcus. As events unfold, it transpires that all characters are connected in some way unexpected.

With themes around self-improvement, growth and time travel, When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead is a captivating read with an enticing storyline.


16. Exhalation – Ted Chiang


Exhalation is a collection of short stories written by Ted Chiang.

Each of the nine short stories centers around themes of humankind’s place in the universe, virtual reality, time travel, the nature of humans and the battle between free will and determinism.

This novel was named one of the top ten books of 2019 by the New York Times Book Review.


17. Body Parts – Jessica Kapp


Body Parts is a Sci-Fi Dystopian novel that will have you on the edge of your seat. It’s packed with suspense, mystery and romance.

The story follows Tabitha who was raised in an Elite foster center where she was sculpted to live in society’s elite class as an athlete.

While Tabitha works to improve her personal health and beat her top scores, she waits to be paired with a family.

As she trains, others in the facility receive beautifying treatments in the hopes that it will find them a family.

When she is finally paired with a family, she discovers the horrifying reality that her foster center, is not what it appears at all…


18. Your One And Only – Adrianne Finlay


Another futuristic novel that will have you thinking about humanity in a different way is Your One And Only.

Jack is the only human in a society of clones. Humanity died in a plague nearly a hundred years prior, and the clones were left to carry on the human race.

While Jack longs for acceptance in this society, he learns that one clone, Althea-310, is different.

She becomes intrigued by Jack, and Jack is intrigued by her.

As their connection deepens, their lives become threatened. Can they survive and what will happen if they do the unthinkable, and fall in love?

Like The Giver, Your One And Only makes you think about what it is to be human as well as why diversity in society is important.


19. The Fog Diver – Joel Ross


The Fog Diver is intended for the Middle-Grade audience, but young adults will love it too.

A white mist cloaks the Earth for more than a hundred years, forcing society to live life in the mountains.

Society’s elite lives high on the slopes, with the rest of society living beneath them.

As the ruthless leader Lord Kodoc rules from the skies, thirteen-year-old Chess and his friends are forced to scavenge in the Fog-ridden ruins for anything they can sell to survive.

It’s a lovely story with just the right amount of complexity to make it interesting, but not so complex that a 10 year old couldn’t understand it.


20. The Girl Who Drank The Moon – Kelly Barnhill


Another middle grade fiction book that will have you contemplating about humanity is The Girl Who Drank The Moon, which is about a witch who accidentally gives a baby powers and raises it as her own.

Each year, the residents of Protectorate must leave a baby as an offering to the terrifying witch living in the forest.

But the witch, known as Xan, is not terrifying at all, but a kind and gentle being who lives in a swamp with her friends a Swamp Monster, a Tiny Dragon and a Fyrian.

She rescues the babies and delivers them to families on the other side of the forest.

One year, she accidentally feeds a baby moonlight instead of starlight, and she begins to grow magical powers.

Xan decides to raise the baby as her own, and so begins their story of love, bravery and self-sacrifice.


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Final Word on Best Books Similar to The Giver

So there you have it! My top 20 books similar to The Giver, by either being set in a dystopian future or by having a storyline about societal roles.

Of course, there are so many other books that could have made it to my list but didn’t have the chance. If you think I missed anything, let me know in the comments!

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About Louisa Smith

Editor/Founder - Epic Book Society

Louisa is the Founder, Editor, and Head Honcho of Epic Book Society. She was born and raised in the United Kingdom and graduated from the University for the Creative Arts with a degree in Journalism. Louisa began her writing career at the age of 7 when her poetry was published in an anthology of poems to celebrate the Queen's Jubilee. Upon graduating university, she spent several years working as a journalist writing about books before transitioning to become a Primary School Teacher. Louisa loves all genres of books, but her favorites are Sci-Fi, Romance, Fantasy, and Young Adult Fiction. Read more Louisa's story here.

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