It is 2035, and the United States is no longer a democracy. There have been no presidential elections since 2024; and according to the New Constitution, none are required. The President is a godlike figure; his party controls not only what people do, but what they say-and even what they think. Secret police come at night, arresting dissidents; people who dare to disagree with the government disappear, never to be seen again. The environment is polluted and poverty is widespread. History has been erased or rewritten. Society is segregated, starting from early childhood. Public schools provide kids with eight years of free education, where they are indoctrinated to believe everything the government says-but are not taught much else. Fourteen-year-old Eric is privileged to be a white middle-class boy living with his mom and dad who were born in this country. Like any teenager, he is grappling with first love, friendships, decisions about future education and career. But, once he approaches middle school graduation, his small secure world begins shaking and rumbling, and his loving parents, hard as they try, can no longer protect him from the brutality of the real world. Does the novel depict our not-so-remote future? Or is it just a weird fantasy, a horror movie? Only time will tell....
