School spirits

Name: School spirits
Author: Rachel Hawkins
ISBN: 9781423148494

Age Rating, Reading Level & Content Guide

by Rachel Hawkins

Reading Level 4-5 LE · Mild · Emotional Ages 13+ Balanced Read

The text is written at a 4th 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.

Find on Amazon Listen on Audible

We may earn a commission from these links.

About This Book

What if you were the last monster hunter in your family, but now you have to go undercover at a haunted high school? Imagine facing ghosts, making new friends, and even feeling your heart race for the first time—all while trying to solve a mystery that could be more dangerous than anything you've fought before. Can Izzy keep her secrets and stop the hauntings before it's too late?

Themes

MagicHigh schoolsSupernaturalAdventure Friendship Romance Humor

Quick Assessment

Fifteen-year-old Izzy, a trained monster hunter, moves with her mom to a small Mississippi town after her older sister vanishes, then goes undercover at a high school plagued by hauntings. The story is funny and snappy, with early teen romance, friendship, and some peril from supernatural creatures, though nothing is described graphically. It suits older teen readers comfortable with paranormal action and light romance.

Why we rated School spirits LE (Mild)

School spirits is written at a Level 4-5 reading level across 297 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 School spirits 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, School spirits explores magic, high schools, supernatural, adventure, and friendship — 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 magic, high schools, supernatural.

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?