The Truth Commission

Name: The Truth Commission
Author: Susan Juby
ISBN: 9780451468772

Age Rating, Reading Level & Content Guide

A Novel

by Susan Juby

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.

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About This Book

What would you do if everyone around you was hiding secrets? Normandy Pale and her two best friends start asking questions that no one wants answered. But when Norm’s famous sister exposes truths that shake everything, what will they discover next?

Themes

Family Friendship Coming of AgeJuvenile FictionSisters

Quick Assessment

Normandy Pale and her two best friends launch a Truth Commission for a school project, asking classmates and teachers about open secrets, until the search leads to her famous sister's own hidden truths. The story is witty and sharp, but it centers on a dysfunctional family, deception, and difficult emotional revelations, so it suits older teens who can handle complicated family dynamics. Expect no graphic content, though the themes of secrets and family conflict are explored with real emotional weight.

Why we rated The Truth Commission LE (Mild)

The Truth Commission is written at a Level 4-5 reading level across 309 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 The Truth Commission 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, The Truth Commission explores family, friendship, coming of age, juvenile fiction, and sisters — 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 family, friendship, coming of age.

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

Gentle

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?