Best of Friends
Nicole Callaway
Best of Friends
Age Rating, Reading Level & Content Guide
Sixth Grade Can Really Kill You; Sixth Grade Sleepover; Sixth Grade Secrets; and A Really Popular Girl
by Nicole Callaway
The text is written at a 7th grade reading level, the subject matter is intended for middle graders (ages 9–12), and the content is mild with minimal sensitive material.
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About This Book
The classroom buzzes with secrets and surprises as best friends face the ups and downs of sixth grade. Suddenly, a whispered secret spills out, and everything changes in an instant. Who can you trust when friendships are on the line?
Quick Assessment
Best of Friends follows a group of sixth graders navigating the challenges of friendship, trust, and growing up. Appropriate for ages 9-12, this middle-grade fiction explores common social dynamics and emotional growth without intense content. It's a relatable read for children dealing with school and peer relationships.
Why we rated Best of Friends 12LE
Best of Friends is written at a Level 7 reading level across 345 pages. Strong independent readers around grade 8.0 can typically handle this book on their own; with parent or teacher support, Best of Friends works for readers up to grade 9.0.
We rate Best of Friends as 12LE ("Light — 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, Best of Friends explores friendship, coming of age, family, and humor — these threads give the book room to mean different things to different readers.
Good fit for
- ✓ Children in the Ages 9-12 range — the maturity and attention span match the story's pacing.
- ✓ Patient readers who enjoy slower, character-driven stories.
- ✓ Kids drawn to stories about friendship, coming of age, family.
Maybe not for
- ! Readers whose emotional readiness lags behind their decoding skills — this book's intensity outruns its reading level, a classic "gifted kid" mismatch.
- ! Reluctant readers who need a fast hook — the pacing here rewards patience.
For Parents
Content Intensity
12LE — Light — EmotionalLight conflict or tension. Mild peril resolved quickly.
Was our "Mild" content intensity rating accurate for this book?
Reading Insights
Hook Factor
2/10A steady, thoughtful read that rewards patient readers.
Discussion Potential
3/10A lighter read — great for independent enjoyment.
Book DNA
Multi-dimensional content fingerprint
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Details
Book Length
- ISBN
- 9780590634540
- Pages
- 345
- Publisher
- Scholastic
- Published
- October 1990
- Type
- Fiction