Our house
Louise Candlish
Our house
Age Rating, Reading Level & Content Guide
by Louise Candlish
The text is written at a 8th grade reading level, the subject matter is intended for middle graders (ages 9–12), and the content has moderate intensity with some emotionally heavy themes.
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About This Book
Imagine coming home to find strangers living in your house — but you never sold it! Fiona and her family thought their special arrangement would keep them safe, but secrets and surprises turn their world upside down. What happens when the place you call home becomes the biggest mystery of all?
Themes
Quick Assessment
Our House is a suspenseful novel exploring the complexities of modern co-parenting and family secrets. Suitable for ages 9-12, it delves into themes of divorce, trust, and the challenges children face in blended families. Parents should note that the story includes tension and mysterious disappearances, but handles these topics in an age-appropriate manner.
Why we rated Our house 12ME
Our house is written at a Level 8 reading level across 404 pages. Strong independent readers around grade 9.0 can typically handle this book on their own; with parent or teacher support, Our house works for readers up to grade 10.0.
We rate Our house as 12ME ("Moderate — Emotional") because the content sits in the "Moderate" range — moderate conflict that may involve loss, scary scenes, or interpersonal stakes. 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 moderate intensity score.
Thematically, Our house explores children of divorced parents, parenting, secrets, home, and divorced parents — 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 children of divorced parents, parenting, secrets.
Maybe not for
- ! Readers who get easily upset by emotional or moderately dark scenes — the conflict here is real, not just background flavor.
- ! Reluctant readers who need a fast hook — the pacing here rewards patience.
For Parents
Content Intensity
12ME — Moderate — EmotionalReal stakes and emotional weight. May include sustained danger, loss, or bullying.
Was our "Moderate" content intensity rating accurate for this book?
Reading Insights
Hook Factor
1/10A 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
- 9780451489111
- Pages
- 404
- Publisher
- Penguin
- Published
- 2018
- Type
- Fiction