Age Rating

[Gabyn]

Could anyone possibly give me an accurate age rating for the series?

[MsMary]

You mean how old you have to be to read it?

[Gabyn]

Indeed I do.

[Gabyn]

Indeed I do.

[Gabyn]

Sorry for double posting

[ussusimiel]

Hi Gabyn, welcome to the Watch!

The Chronicles are adult fiction, and they contain a certain amount of adult material, but not a large amount. There is a significant amount of violence in the series, all of which is integral to the story, so there is nothing gratuitous about it.

My guess is that 16-18 would be a reasonable age for someone to start reading these books, any younger than that might not be appropriate.

That said, IMO, these are fantastic books and are to be highly recommended to anyone old enough to read them. But then, I would say that, this being a fan forum!

If you'd like to let us know a bit more about yourself, why not drop into The Summonsing and get an official-ish welcome?

u.

[MsMary]

Ha, that's a forum glitch that occurs around the same time every day.

My daughter was early high school age when she read it, around 15 or so, I think. I think some here were younger than that.

I think the early age would depend on the maturity of the kid and ability to understand what is going on in the story. And also, a child's ability to be exposed to some of what happens in the book.

Upper age: No limits.

[Zarathustra]

I read it at 14, loved it. If your kid is old enough to understand/appreciate it, they're old enough to handle it. But you do risk turning them off to the series, if they're too young to fully appreciate it. If your kid is gifted, and not particularly sensitive, go for it.

All my parents ever achieved by keeping me from R-rated content was more interest in the R-rated content and resentment toward them.

[aliantha]

What Z said.

I'd go as low as 13, I think. But I'm pretty sure we've had Watchers in the past who were even younger than that when they joined.

Also -- welcome to the Watch, Gabyn! And yes, go say hi in the Summonsing!

[dlbpharmd]

I have a distinct memory of standing in the lunch line and reading LFB when I was in 5th grade. That would put me at about 11 years old. I didn't understand the gravity of some of it (such as Lena's rape,) but I fell in love with it anyway.

[wayfriend]

I didn't read it until I was 17, but 14 seems to be a magic number, in that a lot of people mention this was the age that they first read it.

Would I recommend it to a 14yo? Probably not, because I think it takes an older person to fully appreciate it. (A lot of those people who read it at 14 mention that, too.) Not that a young person wouldn't get anything out of it, but that an older person would appreciate more of it on their first read, and what's the hurry anyway? I think 17 to 20 is the perfect time to read it the first time.

I know that this puts me at odds with other responses here. I'm just not answering based on a capacity to handle it, but based on a desire to maximize the first-time experience.

[MsMary]

I agree, Wayfriend.

I can think of some books I read myself when I was 12 or 13 that I didn't really get till I re-read them when I was older.

[Vraith]

I don't think it is so much age as attitude.
No very young one is going to get it all...not the themes, not a lot of the vocab. [[there probably exist one or two mental giants who happen to also be mature for their age that put the lie to that...but not many.]
BUT---if they're the kind who ENJOY a bit of a challenge, and/or don't care if they "get everything" as long as what the DO get reaches them...that's the thing.
A whole bunch of us here read it young, and liked it, and got much from it---but later, next time...that's what made it special. Cuz it survived and improved.
But for every one of us here that had that experience, I guarantee there are others---and they probably outnumber us---that didn't like it or didn't get it and a door was closed and barred. Not only to TC, but to anything with a resemblance to it.

I guess I mean: know the person, not the age.

[Zarathustra]

I've run into many adults who still don't get the Chronicles (e.g. think it is Christian, rather than turning Christianity on its head), and plenty of adults (myself included) who don't know all of SRD's vocabulary.

Getting more out of the book later is an experience you can't have unless you got less out of it to begin with.

[michaelm]

Doing some quick math in my head, I think I was 17 when I started reading the first books. I don't think anything in it was particularly inappropriate for me then, although I think mid teens is probably a good age to set as a lower limit. Perhaps earlier for well-adjusted and worldly kids.

[Avatar]

As so many have said, it depends on the person reading it, not their age. I was 13 when I first read LFB, for what it's worth.

--A