A very, very bad thing

Name: A very, very bad thing
Author: Jeffery Self
ISBN: 9781338118407

Age Rating, Reading Level & Content Guide

by Jeffery Self

Reading Level 5-6 IE · Intense · Emotional Ages 13+ Heads Up

The text is written at a 5th grade reading level, the subject matter is intended for teens (ages 13+), and the content is intense and may include graphic or distressing scenes. Its HootRating code, IE, means intense content, mostly emotional.

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About This Book

What would you do if your best friend was sent away to change who they are? Marley thinks everything is perfect when he meets Christopher, but then Christopher disappears to a place where they try to make him different. Now Marley has told a huge lie to protect him, but can he handle what comes next?

Themes

FriendshipHonestyLGBTQ+ RepresentationPrejudicesComing of Age

Quick Assessment

Marley, a gay teen in a small North Carolina town, falls in love with Christopher, whose famously bigoted evangelist parents send him to a conversion program that pushes the story into much darker territory. Parents should know the book deals directly with suicide, religious prejudice, and the harm of conversion therapy, and Marley's lie brings serious emotional fallout. Its honest look at love, identity, and consequences suits older teen readers who are ready for heavy themes.

Why we rated A very, very bad thing IE (Intense)

A very, very bad thing is written at a Level 5-6 reading level across 225 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 very, very bad thing as IE (Intense, mostly emotional) because the content sits in the "Intense" range — intense conflict including peril, frightening scenes, or emotionally heavy themes. The strongest signals come from emotional weight, social complexity, thematic difficulty — these are the dimensions parents should evaluate against their reader's tolerance.

Specific content flags noted by reviewers: Suicide, Prejudice.

Thematically, A very, very bad thing explores friendship, honesty, lgbtq+ representation, prejudices, and coming of age — 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 friendship, honesty, lgbtq+ representation.

Maybe not for

! Sensitive readers who get overwhelmed by intense conflict or scary scenes.
! Children younger than 13 — the content intensity is above what most younger kids can process comfortably.

For Parents

Content Intensity

IE · Intense · Emotional

Emotional

Intense ←

Physical

Gentle

Social

Intense

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

Heavy themes explored in depth. War, death, abuse addressed directly.