An Unsettling New Novel From the Author of ‘The Giver’, tell me about this news in (https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/25/books/review/lois-lowry-building-903.html)

The New York Times book review covers “Building 903,” a dystopian novel by two-time Newbery Medal-winning author Lois Lowry, best known for her classic work “The Giver.”

Set in the year 2099, the story takes place in a totalitarian society ruled by a long-standing dictator. Under this regime, citizens live long, placid, and comfortable lives in exchange for total surveillance and severe restrictions: music is outlawed, playgrounds are relics of the past, and owning books is strictly illegal.

The plot centers on 14-year-old Tessa, whose twin brother, Theo, mysteriously vanishes and is completely erased from official records. In a compliant society where nobody is willing to discuss his disappearance, Tessa and her family refuse to look away. An elderly 135-year-old neighbor named Miriam secretly provides Tessa with contraband literature, revealing that confiscated books are locked away in a secure government archive known as Building 903. As Tessa reads, she discovers that books and human imagination are powerful forces capable of opening minds, unlocking forbidden truths, and sparking resistance against an oppressive status quo.

The review highlights Lowry’s return to the thought-provoking, unsettling territory of “The Giver,” framing the novel as a resonant, timely exploration of modern book banning, state-enforced censorship, and the danger of choosing passive comfort over intellectual and creative freedom.