Evan Miller Is Waking Down by Jerel Law

Evan Miller Is Waking Down … and dreamwalking in this inventive dystopian series opener for middle schoolers.

Evan Miller Is Waking Down by Jerel Law. Tommy Nelson, 2024, 320 pages.

Reading Level: Middle Grades, ages 10-12

Recommended for: ages 10+

Evan Miller lives in City 47. He takes the transport to school. He obeys the Primary Code and submits to the Elders. Evan is exactly like the other Level Tens (his age group) except for one disturbing secret: Evan can dreamwalk. When he walks in his dreams, he’s walking in real places, sometimes with real people. Occasionally, he brings back physical objects which proves his dreams are, well, more than dreams. And through his dreams, Evan begins to learn more about the world outside his city. He begins to question the Elders, at first only in his mind.

When Evan and the other Level Tens head off to their “Affirmation,” Evan is nervous. What career path will he be given? Will he be sent to another city? Will he still live with his parents and sister? Will he be able to keep his dreamwalking a secret? Things go terribly wrong at Evan’s Affirmation, and he’s plunged into a forced escape that leads to a secret band of rebels in the Ruins.

The people Evan meets after his flight from City 47 are unlike any he’s known in City 47. The sentries don’t patrol that far, and he meets people who want to overthrow the Elders! He’s never known anyone like this group. But not everyone in the new group has the same approach. The vying claims to leadership and power mimic many historic struggles along similar lines: does overthrowing an evil government require stopping to similar (violent/nefarious) tactics as the evil government, or can revolution happen through different means? Evan is caught in the middle as different factions want to tap into his sophisticated dreamwalking gift. Could he be the one prophesied about, who will help restore the City to its original glory?

Bottom Line: Evan Miller Is Waking Down is an interesting addition to the dystopian fiction landscape that is thought-provoking and clean. Although it’s published by a Christian publisher, it’s not overtly Christian in the text, so it might find a good home even in a public library!

Considerations:

• Sexuality: Minimal, but Evan (who is an older teen) and a girl kiss. A relationship is clearly budding between them, but the focus is on their general connection to one another and doesn’t involve other physical elements.
• Language: On the first page, Evan refers to “god-knows-who” (lower-case “g”).
• Worldview/Spirituality: The beliefs in City 47 are firmly in classic dystopian territory. Those of the people in the Ruins are more vague and generally “spiritual.” Prophetesses, people who can communicate with the Source, and more may make some readers uncomfortable. For the most part, it works in the context of the story. I don’t think readers need to try to find particular spiritual connections to each part, but rather view these as part and parcel of the different worlds.

Also at Redeemed Reader:

• A Resource: Dystopian Fiction Book List!
• A Review: The Scavengers by Michael Perry is a fun dystopian read for middle grades.
• Reviews: Fires of Invention and Gears of Revolution are the first two books in a clever dystopian series for middle grades.

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