Honus & Me
Dan Gutman
Honus & Me
Age Rating, Reading Level & Content Guide
A Baseball Card Adventure (Baseball Card Adventures (Library})
by Dan Gutman
The text is written at a 4th 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
Joe clutches a dusty baseball card, heart pounding as the world around him starts to swirl and change. Suddenly, he’s not in his own time anymore — he’s at a legendary World Series game, face-to-face with Honus Wagner himself. But can Joe keep up with history without changing it forever?
Themes
Quick Assessment
This middle-grade fiction book follows Joe Stoshack, who discovers a rare Honus Wagner baseball card that transports him back to a historic World Series game. Suitable for ages 9-12, the story blends sports history with exciting time travel adventures, encouraging interest in baseball and American history. There is mild peril related to the time-travel scenario but no graphic content.
Why we rated Honus & Me 9LE
Honus & Me is written at a Level 4-5 reading level across 144 pages. Strong independent readers around grade 5.5 can typically handle this book on their own; with parent or teacher support, Honus & Me works for readers up to grade 6.5.
We rate Honus & Me as 9LE ("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, Honus & Me explores historical, sports & recreation, adventure, friendship, and coming of age — 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 historical, sports & recreation, adventure.
Maybe not for
- ! Reluctant readers who need a fast hook — the pacing here rewards patience.
For Parents
Content Intensity
9LE — 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
- 9780613079822
- Pages
- 144
- Publisher
- Turtleback Books
- Published
- October 1999
- Type
- Fiction