If where you're going isn't home
Max Zimmer
If where you're going isn't home
Age Rating, Reading Level & Content Guide
If Where You're Going Isn't Home
by Max Zimmer
The text is written at a 8th grade reading level, the subject matter is intended for teens (ages 13+), and the content is intense and may include graphic or distressing scenes.
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About This Book
Shake grips his trumpet tight as the night swallows the streets of Salt Lake. His parents' words echo like thunder, trying to cage his growing spirit, but the city’s pulse calls him deeper into a world where jazz and danger collide. What will Shake discover about himself when the music fades?
Themes
Quick Assessment
This young adult novel explores the turbulent journey of a sixteen-year-old Mormon teenager navigating complex issues of identity, racism, and moral conflict against the backdrop of Salt Lake's jazz scene. The story contains mature themes including racial discrimination, family tension, and adolescent rebellion, making it appropriate for older teens. Parents should be aware of the frank depiction of these social challenges and the protagonist's struggle with self-acceptance.
Why we rated If where you're going isn't home 12IE
If where you're going isn't home is written at a Level 8 reading level across 495 pages. Strong independent readers around grade 9.0 can typically handle this book on their own; with parent or teacher support, If where you're going isn't home works for readers up to grade 10.0.
We rate If where you're going isn't home as 12IE ("Intense — Emotional") because the content sits in the "Intense" range — intense conflict including peril, frightening scenes, or emotionally heavy themes. The strongest signals come from emotional weight, physical peril, social complexity, thematic difficulty — these are the dimensions parents should evaluate against their reader's tolerance.
Specific content flags noted by reviewers: Racism, Family Conflict, Adolescent Rebellion.
Thematically, If where you're going isn't home explores racism, family, identity & self-discovery, music & arts, and young adult fiction — 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.
- ✓ Patient readers who enjoy slower, character-driven stories.
- ✓ Kids drawn to stories about racism, family, identity & self-discovery.
Maybe not for
- ! Sensitive readers who get overwhelmed by intense conflict or scary scenes.
- ! Children younger than 13+ — the content intensity is above what most younger kids can process comfortably.
- ! Reluctant readers who need a fast hook — the pacing here rewards patience.
For Parents
Content Intensity
12IE — Intense — EmotionalHeavy themes explored in depth. War, death, abuse addressed directly.
Content Flags
Was our "Intense" 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
- 9780985448158
- Pages
- 495
- Publisher
- [Max Zimmer]
- Published
- 2013
- Type
- Fiction