Reviewed by HootRated editorial · Last updated
Midnight at the Electric
Jodi Lynn Anderson
The text is written at a 6th grade reading level, the subject matter is intended for teens (ages 13+), 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
Can a dusty old journal unlock secrets from the past that change the future? Three girls from different times—one from the Dust Bowl, one just after World War I, and one about to live on Mars—are connected in ways no one could imagine. But that's only the beginning.
Themes
Quick Assessment
Three young women's stories unfold across 1919, 1934, and 2065, from a grieving sister crossing the sea after World War I to a Dust Bowl family facing a painful sacrifice and a teen preparing for a Mars mission. The book deals with grief, loss, and family hardship in a thoughtful, lyrical way, with mild peril and some heavy emotional moments. It suits older teen readers who enjoy layered, time-shifting stories about love and resilience.
Why we rated Midnight at the Electric LE (Mild)
Midnight at the Electric is written at a Level 6 reading level across 257 pages. Upper Grades (Ages 13+) is the typical interest range for this book — readers in that age band have the maturity and attention span suited to the story, separate from whether they can decode the words.
We rate Midnight at the Electric 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. The strongest signals come from emotional weight, 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 mild intensity score.
Thematically, Midnight at the Electric explores families, identity, interplanetary voyages, coming of age, and historical — 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.
- ✓ Readers ready to talk through themes after they finish — there's enough substance for a meaningful conversation.
- ✓ Kids drawn to stories about families, identity, interplanetary voyages.
- ✓ Readers (and parents) who care about award-recognized writing — Midnight at the Electric 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 · EmotionalReading 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.
Was our "Mild" content intensity rating accurate for this book?
Reading Insights
Discussion Potential
4/10Good conversation starter with themes worth exploring together.
Book DNA
Multi-dimensional content fingerprint
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Details
Book Length
- ISBN
- 9780062393548
- Pages
- 257
- Publisher
- HarperCollins
- Published
- 2017
- Type
- Fiction