Scan

Name: Scan
Author: Walter Jury
ISBN: 9780399160653

Age Rating, Reading Level & Content Guide

by Walter Jury

Reading Level 5-6 LE · Mild · Emotional Ages 13+ Balanced Read

The text is written at a 5th 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

What if your dad left behind an invention so powerful that it could change everything? Tate Archer is running for his life, chased by secret agents and alien forces who want that invention at any cost. Can he protect his dad’s legacy before it falls into the wrong hands?

Themes

Science & Nature Adventure Family Fantasy World-Building

Quick Assessment

Tate Archer runs from armed government officials and mercenaries after his father is killed in an ambush at his school, while trying to keep the father's invention away from aliens who look human. The story is a fast-paced thriller with chases, gunfire, and a parent's death, along with grief and a strained father-son relationship. Violence is part of the plot pressure rather than graphic, and the book suits older teen readers who enjoy action and science fiction.

Why we rated Scan LE (Mild)

Scan is written at a Level 5-6 reading level across 329 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 Scan 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, Scan explores science & nature, adventure, family, and fantasy world-building — 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.
✓ Kids drawn to stories about science & nature, adventure, family.

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

Mild

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: high

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