This is my brain on boys

Name: This is my brain on boys
Author: Sarah Strohmeyer
ISBN: 9780062259622

Age Rating, Reading Level & Content Guide

by Sarah Strohmeyer

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

Have you ever wondered if love could be figured out like a science experiment? Addie Emerson is determined to crack the code to make anyone fall in love, all while chasing a full scholarship to Harvard. But when a mysterious boy with chocolate-brown eyes enters the picture and her sneaky lab partner tries to ruin her work, will Addie's brain or her heart win the day?

Themes

Friendship Coming of Age Romance HumorPrivate School

Quick Assessment

High school senior Addie Emerson uses months of research to engineer romance while chasing a full scholarship to Harvard and the Athenian Award. The story is a light romantic comedy with lab-partner sabotage, a mysterious love interest with secrets, and a brief flight scare, so it suits readers who handle mild romance and workplace-style rivalry comfortably. Expect a playful reference to drugs used as a joke about love chemistry, and a few shark-related moments played for humor.

Why we rated This is my brain on boys LE (Mild)

This is my brain on boys is written at a Level 4-5 reading level across 342 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 This is my brain on boys 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, This is my brain on boys explores friendship, coming of age, romance, humor, and private school — 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 friendship, coming of age, romance.

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?