Hardy Boys Reading Levels?

[butyl]

Hi,
I was wondering what reading level the Hardy Boys are.  I am trying to find some books for a boy about 11 years old.  what do you think?

[SDLagent]

The recent series, The Hardy Boys: Undercover Brothers, reading level is 8-12 and the original series is about the same and The Hardy Boys Casefiles are 12-15, I think.

[tomswift2002]

Easiest way to find the reading levels is to look at the back of the books.  The classics don't have the reading levels printed on them, but they were written for a general audience, so the reading level would be around Grade 6 for those books.  The paperbacks published by Minstrel and Aladdin will have the information at the bottom right corner on the back of the book.  For example, The Blackwing Puzzle, the first printing by Wanderer books doesn't list a reading level, but then the Minstrel edition says RL: 6.7 (the book was never issued by Aladdin, but on the Aladdin it would say Ages 8-12).  A 6.7 would mean that the book was written for a reading level of someone about 3/4 of the way through Grade 6 (roughly, someone who has been in Grade 6 from September to March/April).

[Centrion]

Also, the Clues Brothers wouldn't be to old, they may be even a bit young, depending on what type of books your son likes.

[SkyWarp]

The main current series, The Hardy Boys Adventures, reading level is 8-12.  The other current series, Hardy Boys Clue Books, reading level is 6-9 years old.

[tomswift2002]

The Original Series reading level has only been adjusted in the last 5 years for the 8-12 age range.  If you look at the pre-1987 books, the series was targeted at ages 10-14.  Even the early Wanderer books were written for this age range, since I believe "Night Of The Werewolf" had a Reading Level of 7.9, essential Grade 8 reading level.  So you're talking about someone who is 13/14 years old.

[tomswift2002]

Scholastic lists the revised "The Tower Treasure" for Grades 6-8

https://www.scholastic.com/teachers/books/hardy-boys-1-the-tower-treasure-by-franklin-w-dixon/

So Grade 6 would be age 11/12 and Grade 8 would be 13/14.  So the 8-12 year old rating that G&as is using nowadays makes very little sense.

[SkyWarp]

UPDATED March 3, 2020:

Reading Levels for each Hardy Boys series:

• The Hardy Boys Adventures: 8-12 years old
• Hardy Boys Clue Books: 6-9 years old
• The Hardy Boys: Undercover Brothers: 8-12 years old
• Original Series: About 8-14 years old
• The Hardy Boys Casefiles: About 12-15 years old