Alan Gratz: Two Degrees (2024) Parents Guide: Is the book OK for kids?

There are no romantic or sexual situations in the book, maintaining a strict focus on the protagonists' fight for survival. The narrative follows Akira, Owen, George, and Natalie as they navigate life-threatening natural disasters, leaving no room for subplots regarding intimacy, dating, or nudity. Even minor interactions between characters remain rooted in friendship, familial bonds, or shared trauma. The tone is consistently urgent and geared toward a middle-grade audience, ensuring the content remains…

Moderate environmental violence and peril are the central drivers of the plot. Characters like Akira are trapped in fast-moving 'superfires' that cause singed hair and physical exhaustion, while Natalie faces the terror of near-drowning in Florida's hurricane surge. In the Canadian Arctic, Owen and George are stalked by predatory polar bears, leading to high-tension scenes involving snowmobile crashes and the use of flares. A significant moment occurs when a mother polar bear is shot and killed to save the boys, a…

The language throughout the novel is very mild and suitable for a middle-grade readership. Occasional uses of 'heck,' 'gosh,' or 'dang' appear during moments of high stress, but there is no profanity or strong offensive language present. The dialogue reflects the urgent reality of the characters' situations without resorting to vulgarity. Even when characters are in extreme pain or facing certain death, their outbursts remain focused on survival and cooperation. This lack of harsh language keeps the focus entirely…

Substance use is entirely absent from the narrative, as the focus remains on the characters' immediate physical survival. Neither the teenage protagonists nor the adults they encounter are shown using alcohol, drugs, or tobacco products. The high-stakes environment of a wildfire, hurricane, or tundra survival leaves no opportunity for such behaviors. The story maintains a clean profile in this category, ensuring that the primary threats are the elements and the animals within them. This lack of substances aligns…

The book carries a heavy focus on climate change, ecological anxiety, and the visceral reality of survival. It explores the psychological toll of losing one's home and the existential dread felt by the younger generation regarding environmental collapse. Characters deal with the guilt of surviving while others—both humans and animals—do not, and there is a recurring theme of adult negligence versus youth activism. The responsibility of fixing global errors is placed squarely on the shoulders of the protagonists…