Cover of Don't Hurt Laurie

Don't Hurt Laurie

by Willo Davis Roberts

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Assigned across 1 curriculum list · 1 state

Grade placement varies by school — the median assigned book spans 4 grade levels (83% span three or more, across 13,258 source-cited assignments).

On reading-award lists:Young Hoosier Book Award

Don't Hurt Laurie by Willo Davis Roberts is assigned in US schools at grades 4–8. It appears across 1 curriculum reference and 1 state, sourced from state DOE pages and AP/IB/Common Core syllabi. Every citation below links to the primary source.

This page shows where Don't Hurt Laurie is assigned in US schools — curricula, states, grades, and the primary-source citations behind each placement. Not a summary or study guide.

Grade range
Grades 4–8
Age range
Ages 9–13
Pages
166
Reading time
about 3h 5m (est.)
First published
1977
Genre
Realistic Fiction
ISBN-13
9780844668796

New to these terms? Reading levels by grade

More formats & details

Other formats on Amazon: Kindle · Audiobook

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About this book

"Don't Hurt Laurie is Willo Davis Roberts' story of a girl physically abused by her mother. Can she escape, and will anyone believe her story?" After her mother, prone to fits of anger, remarries, Laurie, a battered child, is aided by her new nine-year-old stepbrother in finding the help that she so badly needs.

Similar grade-level books

See all books like Don't Hurt Laurie→ — matched on theme + reading level.

Why widely assigned

This Realistic Fiction title, typically at grades 4–8. Written in the 1970s; pairs with curriculum units on child abuse and child abuse, fiction; cited across 1 curriculum framework.

Themes

child abuse · child abuse, fiction · parent and child, fiction · children, fiction

Where this book is assigned

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Common questions

What grade level is Don't Hurt Laurie?
Don't Hurt Laurie is most commonly assigned in US schools in grades 4–8. Specific grade placement varies by curriculum — AP Literature and IB English Literature typically use it in grades 11-12.
How long does it take to read Don't Hurt Laurie?
It takes about 3h 5m to read Don't Hurt Laurie (166 pages) at an average adult reading pace of about 250 words per minute — roughly 185 minutes. Faster or slower readers will vary; the estimate is a planning guide for assigning the book.
What curricula assign Don't Hurt Laurie?
Don't Hurt Laurie appears on reading lists for Young Hoosier Book Award. Each assignment on this site links to its primary-source citation.
Is Don't Hurt Laurie banned in schools?
Don't Hurt Laurie does not appear in PEN America's Index of School Book Bans 2022-2024. No documented multi-district removals on record, but individual districts may challenge titles locally.
What themes does Don't Hurt Laurie explore?
Central themes in Don't Hurt Laurie include child abuse, child abuse, fiction, parent and child, fiction, children, fiction. These themes match how the book is discussed in most curriculum guides and AP Literature prompts.

Why this book is on this list

How we classify

Each dimension below is sourced from a public reference. The full framework is documented on the classification standard page.

Lexile measure
Not classified — this book has no published Lexile measure.
Grade band
Grades 4–8 — drawn from state ELA frameworks and AP/IB syllabi citing this book.
Curriculum alignment
Cited in 1 curriculum on this site (see “Where assigned” above for primary-source links).
State-level evidence
Cited in 1 state ELA framework or DOE list (see citations above).
Removal / banning records
No tracked removal or challenge records in cited sources.
Seasonal / contextual tags
Tagged for: book-club.

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