Born to be wild

Name: Born to be wild
Author: Matt London
ISBN: 9781595147561

Age Rating, Reading Level & Content Guide

by Matt London

Reading Level 4-5 LT · Mild · Thematic Ages 13+ Balanced Read

The text is written at a 4th grade reading level, the subject matter is intended for teens (ages 13+), and the content is mild with minimal sensitive material. Its HootRating code, LT, means mild content, mostly thematic.

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About This Book

Rick races through the wild, dodging machines tearing up the land. Evie calls out, 'We have to stop them before they destroy everything!' But with the global rule-maker blocking their every move, can they protect their new home?

Themes

Adventure FamilyLand Settlement

Quick Assessment

A family of settlers must build homes, schools, and hospitals fast on a newly discovered continent to convince a global authority that people can live there, while a scheming developer tries to take it for herself. Expect a lighthearted adventure with cartoonish villainy and sibling teamwork, plus some mild peril and tense building-site competition. It suits readers who enjoy comic, action-driven survival stories about protecting nature from greed.

Why we rated Born to be wild LT (Mild)

Born to be wild is written at a Level 4-5 reading level across 172 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 Born to be wild as LT (Mild, mostly thematic) 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, Born to be wild explores adventure, family, and land settlement — 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 adventure, family, land settlement.

Maybe not for

! Readers looking for something heavier — this is a gentle, low-stakes story by design.

For Parents

Content Intensity

LT · Mild · Thematic

Emotional

Mild

Physical

Mild

Social

Mild

Thematic

Mild ←

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

Light conflict or tension. Mild peril resolved quickly.

Data confidence: high

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