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  • Messenger

  • By: Lois Lowry
  • Narrated by: David Morse
  • Length: 3 hrs and 44 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (2,099 ratings)

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Messenger

By: Lois Lowry
Narrated by: David Morse
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Publisher's summary

Six years earlier, Matty had come to Village as a scrappy and devious little boy. Back then, he liked to call himself "the Fiercest of the Fierce." But since that time, Matty has grown almost into a man under the care of Seer, a blind man whose special sight had earned him the name. Now Matty hopes that he will soon be given his true name, and he hopes it will be Messenger. But strange changes are taking place in Village. Once a utopian community that prided itself on its welcome to newcomers, Village will soon be closed to all outsiders. As one of the only people able to safely travel through the dangerous Forest, Matty must deliver the message of Village's closing and try to convince Seer's daughter, Kira, to return with him before it's too late. But Forest has grown hostile to Matty too, and he must risk everything to fight his way through it, armed only with an emerging power he cannot yet explain or understand.
©2004 Lois Lowry (P)2004 Random House, Inc., Listening Library, an imprint of the Random House Audio Publishing Group

Critic reviews

"Builds suspense to the last heart-wrenching page." (Booklist)
"Simply and beautifully written..." (The New York Times Book Review)

Featured Article: Excellent Dystopian Listens Like The Hunger Games


The popularity of Suzanne Collins’s The Hunger Games trilogy and its film adaptations has paved the way for so many great dystopian books and series in YA, imagining harrowing worlds where teens must fight for survival and define what life means to them. The enduring popularity of the series has proven that dystopian stories and the sometimes-dark futures they imagine are endlessly fascinating to our imaginations.

What listeners say about Messenger

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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    1,419
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  • 3 Stars
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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Incredible!

Loved the story, the narrator, and how it tied together with The Giver. I will recommend this to my children. And friends.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Absolutely loved this

So I read in grade school The Giver by Lois Lowry and decided to read Messenger on Audible because she inspired so much wonder as a young child to me. I was not disappointed! This was such an adventure of discovering ones true self and it makes me wonder if my true self is what I expect it to be as well. I feel like this book was just as good as The Giver and it gave me the same sense of wonder and thought as I had as a child!

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Really great

Which character – as performed by David Morse – was your favorite?

The blind man by far!

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Sometimes it takes the strength or a youth to save a community.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

It was really good

Love it it was the best book I've read in forever I can't believe this

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

MESSENGR review

Hello I am Seoyeon from South Korea. I read this book because The giver was so intresting. Messenger is in a series, and I have read all but one. But, the other books were fun too. The main character in this book is Matty. Matty is a brave boy, and has special powers. He travels through the forest with Kira, who can only use one leg. I won't spoil the ending... Anyway, this book is very very very good!!

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Great trilogy...but could have been one book

Really enjoyed the three books in the trilogy. Good story, plot and character development. Narration was decent as well. My only complaint is the length. The trilogy is only about 14 hours long, it could have been one book.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

amazing!

Great Book!
Great Author!
Well Read!

a great way to spend time with family and friends.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

only 1 downside

The only downside is that the character's voices are a bit difficult to distinguish from one to the next. It can be difficult to keep track of conversation without distinguishing voices.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

The Healer

Well done narrator for all the characters and description. The merging of the Giver and gathering Blue is very well tailored.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

The Giver stands alone... Messenger needs...

Messenger is actually the end to Gathering Blue and ties the three books together. You need to have read the other two for it to make sense. The Giver to me is the classic and although I am glad to have read the other two, they do not reach as deep or as high for me. Gathering Blue felt unfinished, the end is here in Messenger... but Messenger is short and leaves lots and lots of loose ends unsatisfied for me as well. That said Lois is an incrediable writer and I love her themes, mind and creativty.

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11 people found this helpful