Short Chapters

Finishing a book, let alone one chapter, can be a huge barrier for reluctant readers. That’s why we crafted our books to have short chapters of about 500 words that even struggling readers can finish in only 15-20 minutes. This gives them a sense of accomplishment and motivation to keep reading.

Lower Word Count

Unlike most middle grade novels that range from 25,000-50,000 words, all our books are about 10,000 words, making it easier for kids to finish. Although shorter in word count, our books still look like typical middle grade books and not early readers. By incorporating illustrations, a glossary, and larger text, our books are around 180 pages. 

Social/Emotional Themes

We are passionate about helping children feel their feelings in a safe way! Zest was designed with that in mind. The plots support our social/emotional mission by putting characters into situations to feel hard feelings, and then cope with them in safe, healing ways. Additionally, some of the magic of Zest is built on emotions. There are creatures created from feelings! The creatures are meant to help children visualize big emotions and work through them magically.

Illustrations Designed to Support Comprehension

There are cute, engaging illustrations in each chapter. These illustrations were designed and placed carefully to help struggling readers understand the story. But they are also fun and magical!

Vocabulary Help On the Page

While it is common in children’s non-fiction books to have vocabulary help on every page, this has not become common practice in fiction. We want to help our young readers understand as much text as possible, while also growing their vocabulary. For this reason, we define vocabulary on the page.

Simple Glossary in the Back of the Book

We include a glossary at the back of each book that includes vocabulary highlighted throughout the text. It is an extremely simple glossary including only the word and its meaning within the context of the text. This is intended as a stepping stone, and meant to make it easier to understand and navigate than a standard dictionary or glossary.

High-Interest Plots

All our books are written to reflect real children’s interests and dreams. We go to magical places and interact with magical creatures while addressing the real-world concerns and interests of middle-grade kids. It helps that we have a collective experience of over 30 years working with middle-graders!

Low Reading Level

“Low” can be subjective. Every child is reading where they are at, and we respect that. But we do craft our books to be readable for “average” 2nd Graders, while designing the plot and characters for 3rd and 4th graders. We use standard leveling systems to ensure that our vocabulary and plot structures are appropriate for our intended market: 7-12 year-olds who struggle.