The Game

Name: The Game
Author: Lindsey Sanna
ISBN: 9781422202920

Age Rating, Reading Level & Content Guide

by Lindsey Sanna

Hip-Hop

Reading Level 7-8 LE · Mild · Emotional Ages 9-12 Balanced Read Page-Turner

The text is written at a 7th grade reading level, the subject matter is intended for middle graders (ages 9–12), 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

Follow the journey of a young hip-hop artist as he rises through the challenges of the music world, discovering his voice and passion along the way. Experience the beats, struggles, and triumphs that shape his path to stardom.

Themes

MusicComing of AgeBiography

Quick Assessment

This is a Level 7-8 book with mild content intensity. Content themes include mild peril, identity & self-discovery. Written for readers ages 9-12.

Why we rated The Game LE (Mild)

The Game is written at a Level 7-8 reading level across 64 pages (approximately 8,552 words). Middle Grades (Ages 9-12) 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.

Read aloud, The Game takes about 57 minutes, which fits within a single read-aloud session.

We rate The Game 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.

Specific content flags noted by reviewers: Mild Peril, Identity & Self-Discovery.

Thematically, The Game explores music, coming of age, and biography — 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.
✓ Reluctant readers who need fast-paced, hook-heavy stories to stay engaged.
✓ Readers ready to talk through themes after they finish — there's enough substance for a meaningful conversation.
✓ Kids drawn to stories about music, coming of age, biography.
✓ Readers who fall hard for one book and want a long series to live in — there are 5 more books in the Hip-Hop series.
✓ Curious kids who prefer real-world topics over made-up stories.

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

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

Light conflict or tension. Mild peril resolved quickly.