Reviewed by HootRated editorial · Last updated
The summer prince
Alaya Dawn Johnson
The summer prince
Age Rating, Reading Level & Content Guide
by Alaya Dawn Johnson
The text is written at a 5th grade reading level, the subject matter is intended for teens (ages 13+), and the content is intense and may include graphic or distressing scenes. Its HootRating code, IP, means intense content, mostly physical.
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About This Book
Set in a futuristic Brazil, a young artist named June finds herself drawn into a passionate romance with a fellow creator who leads a rebellion against the ruling powers. As they navigate their love and fight for freedom, June faces the harsh reality that every summer ruler meets a tragic fate. Their story blends art, resistance, and the struggle for survival in a vibrant, dangerous world.
Themes
Quick Assessment
This is a Level 5-6 book with intense content intensity. Content themes include sexual content, profanity, violence. Written for readers ages 13+.
Why we rated The summer prince IP (Intense)
The summer prince is written at a Level 5-6 reading level across 289 pages (approximately 92,134 words). 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.
Read aloud, The summer prince runs about 10.2 hours — long enough to span several bedtime sessions.
We rate The summer prince as IP (Intense, mostly physical) because the content sits in the "Intense" range — intense conflict including peril, frightening scenes, or emotionally heavy themes. The strongest signals come from physical peril — these are the dimensions parents should evaluate against their reader's tolerance.
Specific content flags noted by reviewers: Sexual Content, Profanity, Violence, Political Conflict.
Thematically, The summer prince explores love, artists, resistance to government, kings and queens, and fiction — 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.
- ✓ Patient readers who enjoy denser, slower-paced text.
- ✓ Kids drawn to stories about love, artists, resistance to government.
Maybe not for
- ! Sensitive readers who get overwhelmed by intense conflict or scary scenes.
- ! Children younger than 13 — the content intensity is above what most younger kids can process comfortably.
- ! Children who are sensitive to violence, even when handled at age-appropriate levels.
- ! Reluctant readers who need a fast hook — the text is dense and the pacing rewards patience.
For Parents
Content Intensity
IP · Intense · PhysicalReading 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
Heavy themes explored in depth. War, death, abuse addressed directly.
Content Flags
Was our "Intense" content intensity rating accurate for this book?
Reading Insights
Hook Factor
1/10A denser, slower-paced read that rewards patient readers.
Discussion Potential
1/10A lighter read — great for independent enjoyment.
Book DNA
Multi-dimensional content fingerprint
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Details
Book Length
- ISBN
- 9780545417792
- Pages
- 289
- Publisher
- Arthur A. Levine Books
- Published
- May, 2013
- Type
- Fiction
- Word Count
- 92,134
- Read-Aloud
- ~10h 14m
- Text Density
- Dense