Child and Adolescent Drug and Substance Abuse
Louis A. Pagliaro
Child and Adolescent Drug and Substance Abuse
Age Rating, Reading Level & Content Guide
A Comprehensive Reference Guide
by Louis A. Pagliaro
The text is written at a 8th grade reading level, the subject matter is intended for middle graders (ages 9–12), and the content has moderate intensity with some emotionally heavy themes.
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About This Book
What happens when kids and teens face the challenge of drugs and substances? Imagine trying to understand why some young people make risky choices and how it affects their health and lives. The answers are complicated, and this book explores them carefully, but what can we really do to help?
Themes
Quick Assessment
This book offers a thorough and research-based look at drug and substance abuse among children and adolescents in the U.S. It is designed for middle-grade readers (ages 9-12) and provides an unbiased, educational perspective on the trends, risks, and effects of substance use. Parents should note that the book discusses sensitive topics related to drug use but does so in an informative and appropriate manner for the age group.
Why we rated Child and Adolescent Drug and Substance Abuse 12ME
Child and Adolescent Drug and Substance Abuse is written at a Level 8 reading level across 624 pages. Strong independent readers around grade 9.0 can typically handle this book on their own; with parent or teacher support, Child and Adolescent Drug and Substance Abuse works for readers up to grade 10.0.
We rate Child and Adolescent Drug and Substance Abuse as 12ME ("Moderate — 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, social complexity, 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, Child and Adolescent Drug and Substance Abuse explores health and hygiene, youth, drug use, and education — 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 health and hygiene, youth, drug use.
Maybe not for
- ! Readers who get easily upset by emotional or moderately dark scenes — the conflict here is real, not just background flavor.
- ! Reluctant readers who need a fast hook — the pacing here rewards patience.
For Parents
Content Intensity
12ME — Moderate — EmotionalReal stakes and emotional weight. May include sustained danger, loss, or bullying.
Was our "Moderate" content intensity rating accurate for this book?
Reading Insights
Hook Factor
1/10A steady, thoughtful read that rewards patient readers.
Discussion Potential
2/10A lighter read — great for independent enjoyment.
Book DNA
Multi-dimensional content fingerprint
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Details
Book Length
- ISBN
- 9781138542143
- Pages
- 624
- Publisher
- Routledge
- Published
- 2019
- Type
- Fiction