Freddy Plays Football
Walter R. Brooks
Freddy Plays Football
Age Rating, Reading Level & Content Guide
by Walter R. Brooks
The text is written at a 6th grade reading level, the subject matter is intended for middle graders (ages 9–12), and the content is gentle with no concerning themes.
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About This Book
Freddy races across the football field, dodging players twice his size. The crowd roars as he makes a surprising play, but can a pig really lead a high school team to victory? Just when things get intense, a mystery on the farm pulls Freddy away from the game!
Themes
Quick Assessment
This middle-grade fiction novel follows Freddy, a clever pig who unexpectedly joins a high school football team. Combining humor, mystery, and sports, the story explores themes of friendship and teamwork suitable for ages 9-12. The content is lighthearted, with no intense material, making it a fun read for children interested in animals and sports.
Why we rated Freddy Plays Football 11C
Freddy Plays Football is written at a Level 6 reading level across 272 pages. Strong independent readers around grade 7.0 can typically handle this book on their own; with parent or teacher support, Freddy Plays Football works for readers up to grade 8.0.
We rate Freddy Plays Football as 11C ("Clear") because the content sits in the "Gentle" range — no conflict beyond everyday childhood experiences. Across our four dimensions (emotional, physical, social, thematic) the book reads as evenly gentle; no single dimension stands out as a concern.
No specific content flags were raised by community reviewers, which is consistent with the gentle intensity score.
Thematically, Freddy Plays Football explores friendship, humor, sports, mystery, and animals — 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.
- ✓ Kids drawn to stories about friendship, humor, sports.
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.
For Parents
Content Intensity
11C — ClearNo conflict beyond everyday childhood experiences. Safe for sensitive readers.
Was our "Gentle" content intensity rating accurate for this book?
Reading Insights
Hook Factor
4/10A steady, thoughtful read that rewards patient readers.
Discussion Potential
1/10A lighter read — great for independent enjoyment.
Book DNA
Multi-dimensional content fingerprint
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Details
Book Length
- ISBN
- 9781497692237
- Pages
- 272
- Publisher
- Open Road Media
- Published
- 2014
- Type
- Fiction