A history of glitter and blood

Name: A history of glitter and blood
Author: Hannah Moskowitz
ISBN: 9781452129426

Age Rating, Reading Level & Content Guide

by Hannah Moskowitz

Reading Level 4-5 ME · Moderate · Emotional Ages 13+ Matched

The text is written at a 4th grade reading level, the subject matter is intended for teens (ages 13+), and the content has moderate intensity with some emotionally heavy themes. Its HootRating code, ME, means moderate content, mostly emotional.

Find on Amazon Listen on Audible

We may earn a commission from these links.

About This Book

Beckan is the bravest fairy in a town torn by war, standing strong when everyone else runs away. She and her friends face fierce gnomes and mysterious tightropers in a fight that’s about more than just survival—it’s about friendship and love that can change everything. But can Beckan keep her family together when everything around them is falling apart?

Themes

Fantasy World-Building Friendship Family Adventure

Quick Assessment

Sixteen-year-old Beckan and her friends stay in the fairy city of Ferrum as war erupts among fairies, gnomes, and mysterious outside forces, and they are forced into the gnome underworld to survive. The story includes battles, danger, and sacrifice, with fantasy violence and emotional loss handled with weight but not graphic detail. Romance appears as a non-explicit love story, and the book raises thoughtful questions about family, justice, and war that suit older teens.

Why we rated A history of glitter and blood ME (Moderate)

A history of glitter and blood is written at a Level 4-5 reading level across 274 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 A history of glitter and blood as ME (Moderate, mostly emotional) because the content sits in the "Moderate" range — moderate conflict that may involve loss, scary scenes, or interpersonal stakes. The strongest signals come from emotional weight, thematic difficulty — these are the dimensions parents should evaluate against their reader's tolerance.

No specific content flags were raised by community reviewers, which is consistent with the moderate intensity score.

Thematically, A history of glitter and blood explores fantasy world-building, friendship, 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 fantasy world-building, friendship, family.

Maybe not for

! Readers who get easily upset by emotional or moderately dark scenes — the conflict here is real, not just background flavor.

For Parents

Content Intensity

ME · Moderate · Emotional

Emotional

Moderate ←

Physical

Mild

Social

Mild

Thematic

Moderate

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

Real stakes and emotional weight. May include sustained danger, loss, or bullying.

Data confidence: high

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