Gone to drift

Name: Gone to drift
Author: Diana McCaulay
ISBN: 9780062672964

Age Rating, Reading Level & Content Guide

by Diana McCaulay

Reading Level 6 LE · Mild · Emotional Ages 9-12 Balanced Read

Burt Award for Caribbean Literature

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 mild with minimal sensitive material. Its HootRating code, LE, means mild content, mostly emotional.

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About This Book

What happens when the person you trust most disappears into the vast ocean? Lloyd’s grandfather, Maas Conrad, doesn’t come back from a fishing trip, and the sea feels bigger and more mysterious than ever. As Lloyd searches through the waves, secrets about the ocean and the people who live by it begin to rise—what will he find?

Themes

Family Adventure Coming of Age Multicultural

Quick Assessment

Gone to Drift is a middle grade novel set in Jamaica, exploring themes of family, courage, and cultural connection through the story of Lloyd, a boy whose fisherman grandfather disappears at sea. Told through alternating voices, it offers an engaging look at Jamaican life and the complexities of the ocean environment. Suitable for ages 9-12, the book deals with themes of loss and community in an age-appropriate way without graphic content.

Why we rated Gone to drift LE (Mild)

Gone to drift is written at a Level 6 reading level across 265 pages. Reading-wise, most kids in grade 7 and up can manage Gone to drift on their own; younger readers can enjoy it with a parent or teacher reading along.

We rate Gone to drift as LE (Mild, mostly 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, Gone to drift explores family, adventure, coming of age, and multicultural — 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.
✓ Readers ready to talk through themes after they finish — there's enough substance for a meaningful conversation.
✓ Kids drawn to stories about family, adventure, coming of age.
✓ Readers (and parents) who care about award-recognized writing — Gone to drift carries an award.

Maybe not for

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

For Parents

Content Intensity

LE · Mild · Emotional

Emotional

Mild ←

Physical

Gentle

Social

Gentle

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: standard

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