Reviewed by HootRated editorial · Last updated
The Here and Now
Ann Brashares
The Here and Now
Age Rating, Reading Level & Content Guide
by Ann Brashares
The text is written at a 3rd grade reading level, the subject matter is intended for teens (ages 13+), and the content is mild with minimal sensitive material. Its HootRating code, LE, means mild content, mostly emotional.
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About This Book
What if you came from the future to save the world but had to follow impossible rules? Prenna has left behind a ruined future and now lives in the present, where she’s not allowed to fall in love or change history. But when she meets Ethan, everything she believes in is put to the test.
Quick Assessment
This young adult novel follows Prenna, a teenager from a dystopian future who has relocated to the present to help prevent a devastating pandemic. The story explores themes of love, sacrifice, and the consequences of altering history. Suitable for teens 13 and older, it contains thoughtful reflections on responsibility and emotional challenges without graphic content.
Why we rated The Here and Now LE (Mild)
The Here and Now is written at a Level 3-4 reading level across 242 pages. Upper Grades (Ages 13+) is the typical interest range for this book — readers in that age band have the maturity and attention span suited to the story, separate from whether they can decode the words.
We rate The Here and Now as LE (Mild, mostly emotional) because the content sits in the "Mild" range — mild conflict — the kind a child encounters in normal play and sibling life. Across our four dimensions (emotional, physical, social, thematic) the book reads as evenly mild; no single dimension stands out as a concern.
No specific content flags were raised by community reviewers, which is consistent with the mild intensity score.
Thematically, The Here and Now explores coming of age, romance, science & nature, family, and adventure — these threads give the book room to mean different things to different readers.
Good fit for
- ✓ Children in the Ages 13+ range — the maturity and attention span match the story's pacing.
- ✓ Kids drawn to stories about coming of age, romance, science & nature.
Maybe not for
- ! Readers looking for something heavier — this is a gentle, low-stakes story by design.
For Parents
Content Intensity
LE · Mild · EmotionalReading the HootRating code: the first letter is the content intensity (C = Gentle · L = Mild · M = Moderate · I = Intense · V = Very Intense); the second, when there is one, is the kind of content that drives it (E = Emotional · P = Physical · S = Social · T = Thematic). Reading level and age range are rated separately. How we rate
Light conflict or tension. Mild peril resolved quickly.
Was our "Mild" content intensity rating accurate for this book?
Reading Insights
Discussion Potential
3/10A lighter read — great for independent enjoyment.
Book DNA
Multi-dimensional content fingerprint
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Details
Book Length
- ISBN
- 9780385736800
- Pages
- 242
- Publisher
- Delacorte Press
- Published
- April 8th 2014
- Type
- Fiction