Ah, 《The Giver》。 Thank you so very much

for this piece; it brings back happy memories.  The book was recommended to me by my son.  He loved it, and made it the subject of one of his college application essays.  I also really loved it and had similar thoughts as you when reading it.  My son and I discussed the book in depth and both learned a lot from it.  I believe it is a must read for the elementary school kids in the States, and, in my humble opinion, it should be a must read for adults, too.     

By the way, the book has been made into a (2014) movie.  

The British movie 《Hot Fuzz》is (funny and）a bit along the same vein: people taking extreme measures (murder) to ensure conformity in the name of the "greater good".