The dog days of Charlotte Hayes

Name: The dog days of Charlotte Hayes
Author: Marlane Kennedy
ISBN: 9780061452413

Age Rating, Reading Level & Content Guide

by Marlane Kennedy

Reading Level 4-5 C · Gentle Ages 9-12 Balanced Read

The text is written at a 4th grade reading level, the subject matter is intended for middle graders (ages 9–12), and the content is gentle with no concerning themes. Its HootRating code, C, means gentle content.

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About This Book

Why would anyone want a huge, slobbery Saint Bernard puppy? Charlotte doesn’t get the fuss about dogs, yet somehow Beauregard ends up in her backyard, lonely and chained. Can Charlotte find a way to give Beauregard the happy home he deserves before it’s too late?

Themes

Family FriendshipAnimals & PetsResponsibilityComing of Age Multicultural

Quick Assessment

This middle-grade novel explores themes of family, responsibility, and kindness through the story of Charlotte, a girl who reluctantly cares for a neglected Saint Bernard puppy. Set in West Virginia, the book gently addresses the challenges of caring for pets and the compassion needed to help animals in need. Suitable for readers ages 9 to 12, it offers a warm, relatable look at growing up and making a difference.

Why we rated The dog days of Charlotte Hayes C (Gentle)

The dog days of Charlotte Hayes is written at a Level 4-5 reading level across 240 pages. Reading-wise, most kids in grade 6 and up can manage The dog days of Charlotte Hayes on their own; younger readers can enjoy it with a parent or teacher reading along.

We rate The dog days of Charlotte Hayes as C (Gentle) because the content sits in the "Gentle" range — no conflict beyond everyday childhood experiences. Across our four dimensions (emotional, physical, social, thematic) the book reads as evenly gentle; no single dimension stands out as a concern.

No specific content flags were raised by community reviewers, which is consistent with the gentle intensity score.

Thematically, The dog days of Charlotte Hayes explores family, friendship, animals & pets, responsibility, 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 family, friendship, animals & pets.

Maybe not for

! Readers looking for something heavier — this is a gentle, low-stakes story by design.

For Parents

Content Intensity

C · Gentle

Emotional

Mild

Physical

Gentle

Social

Gentle

Thematic

Gentle

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

No conflict beyond everyday childhood experiences. Safe for sensitive readers.

Data confidence: high

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