This Is What I Did:

Name: This Is What I Did:
Author: Ann Dee Ellis
ISBN: 9780316013635

Age Rating, Reading Level & Content Guide

by Ann Dee Ellis

Reading Level 3 ME · Moderate · Emotional Ages 11+ Heads Up

The text is written at a 3rd grade reading level, the subject matter is intended for older middle graders (ages 11+), and the content has moderate intensity with some emotionally heavy themes. Its HootRating code, ME, means moderate content, mostly emotional.

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About This Book

Logan is no hero—he's just a kid caught in something way bigger than himself. He saw something terrible happen to his friend and didn’t know what to do. Now, everything he thought about friendship and courage is turned upside down, and the truth might be harder than he ever imagined.

Themes

BullyingFriendship Coming of AgePsychological DramaMoral Complexity

Quick Assessment

This novel explores the complex themes of bullying, friendship, and moral courage through the eyes of Logan, a thoughtful but awkward teenager. It is suitable for teens aged 13-18 and deals with psychological drama and social issues realistically but sensitively. Parents should note the story includes emotional challenges and situations involving peer conflict and personal responsibility.

Why we rated This Is What I Did: ME (Moderate)

This Is What I Did: is written at a Level 3 reading level across 176 pages. Reading-wise, most kids in grade 4 and up can manage This Is What I Did: on their own; younger readers can enjoy it with a parent or teacher reading along.

We rate This Is What I Did: as ME (Moderate, mostly emotional) because the content sits in the "Moderate" range — moderate conflict that may involve loss, scary scenes, or interpersonal stakes. The strongest signals come from emotional weight, social complexity, thematic difficulty — these are the dimensions parents should evaluate against their reader's tolerance.

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

Thematically, This Is What I Did: explores bullying, friendship, coming of age, psychological drama, and moral complexity — these threads give the book room to mean different things to different readers.

Good fit for

✓ Children in the Ages 11+ range — the maturity and attention span match the story's pacing.
✓ Kids drawn to stories about bullying, friendship, coming of age.

Maybe not for

! Readers who get easily upset by emotional or moderately dark scenes — the conflict here is real, not just background flavor.

For Parents

Content Intensity

ME · Moderate · Emotional

Emotional

Moderate ←

Physical

Gentle

Social

Moderate

Thematic

Moderate

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

Real stakes and emotional weight. May include sustained danger, loss, or bullying.

Data confidence: high

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