Snake

Name: Snake
Author: Jeff Stone
ISBN: 9780375830761

Age Rating, Reading Level & Content Guide

by Jeff Stone

Reading Level 4-5 ME · Moderate · Emotional Ages 9-12 Matched

The text is written at a 4th 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. Its HootRating code, ME, means moderate content, mostly emotional.

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About This Book

What happens when a twelve-year-old master of snake-style martial arts loses his temple and his Grandmaster? Seh finds himself caught between danger and discovery as he joins a bandit gang and encounters a mysterious woman named Cobra. Can he outrun the vengeful Ying and uncover the secrets that bind them all?

Themes

Martial ArtsAdventureHuman-Animal RelationshipsFriendship Coming of Age

Quick Assessment

This middle-grade fiction follows twelve-year-old Seh, a skilled snake-style martial artist, who navigates life after losing his temple and mentor. The story involves themes of martial arts, adventure, and human-animal relationships, with some mild peril as Seh encounters a bandit gang and a vengeful antagonist. Suitable for ages 9-12, it offers action and suspense without graphic content.

Why we rated Snake ME (Moderate)

Snake is written at a Level 4-5 reading level across 210 pages. Reading-wise, most kids in grade 6 and up can manage Snake on their own; younger readers can enjoy it with a parent or teacher reading along.

We rate Snake as ME (Moderate, mostly 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, physical peril — 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, Snake explores martial arts, adventure, human-animal relationships, friendship, and coming of age — 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.
✓ Kids drawn to stories about martial arts, adventure, human-animal relationships.

Maybe not for

! Readers who get easily upset by emotional or moderately dark scenes — the conflict here is real, not just background flavor.

For Parents

Content Intensity

ME · Moderate · Emotional

Emotional

Moderate ←

Physical

Moderate

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

Real stakes and emotional weight. May include sustained danger, loss, or bullying.

Data confidence: high

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