Those that wake

Name: Those that wake
Author: Jesse Karp
ISBN: 9780547553115

Age Rating, Reading Level & Content Guide

by Jesse Karp

Reading Level 5-6 LE · Mild · Emotional Ages 13+ Balanced Read

The text is written at a 5th 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

The sharp crackle of static fills the air, like the world itself is fraying at the edges. Mal and Laura feel the strange silence where their families should be—no memories, no traces, just empty spaces in everyone’s minds. As they step deeper into this tangled mystery, the weight of being forgotten settles heavy on their hearts.

Themes

Science & Nature FamilyMemoryAdventureScience fiction

Quick Assessment

Those That Wake follows two teenagers in a near-future city where technology has pulled people apart, and where Mal and Laura discover that someone has erased them from the memories of everyone they know. The story deals with missing family members, foster care, loneliness, and the fear of losing one's identity, and it includes some tense, sci-fi peril without graphic violence. It suits readers who enjoy thoughtful, emotionally driven science fiction about family and belonging.

Why we rated Those that wake LE (Mild)

Those that wake is written at a Level 5-6 reading level across 329 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 Those that wake 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, Those that wake explores science & nature, family, memory, adventure, and science fiction — 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 science & nature, family, memory.

Maybe not for

! Readers looking for something heavier — this is a gentle, low-stakes story by design.

For Parents

Content Intensity

LE · Mild · Emotional

Emotional

Mild ←

Physical

Gentle

Social

Gentle

Thematic

Mild

Reading 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.

Data confidence: high

Was our "Mild" content intensity rating accurate for this book?