
Spirit Seeker
by Joan Lowery Nixon · Grades 6–8 · Mystery
Spirit Seeker by Joan Lowery Nixon is on US reading lists at grades 6–8. It appears on 1 list: the Virginia Readers' Choice, across 1 state. Every citation below links to the primary source.
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Before you buy: Ages 11–13 · Grades 6–8 · 197 pages. The button opens an Amazon search: pick the edition with ISBN 9780440226857 if that is the one your class uses.
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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).
This page shows where Spirit Seeker is assigned in US schools — curricula, states, grades, and the primary-source citations behind each placement. Not a summary or study guide.
Reading level at a glance
- Grade range
- Grades 6–8
- Age range
- Ages 11–13
- Pages
- 197
- Reading time
- about 3h 35m (est.)
- First published
- 1995
- Genre
- Mystery
- ISBN-13
- 9780440226857
Sources: grade range from the cited lists below, last checked 2026-09-24; pages and year from our catalog record (sources); reading time is an estimate at 250 words a minute.
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Why it is assigned
This mystery title is typically read at grades 6–8. Written in the 1990s; pairs with curriculum units on extrasensory perception and mystery and detective stories; cited on the Virginia Readers' Choice.
Where this book is recommended
Virginia Readers' Choice
- recommended·6th grade · Virginiasource: Virginia Readers' Choice past winners, 1999-2000 winner (Middle)
- recommended·7th grade · Virginiasource: Virginia Readers' Choice past winners, 1999-2000 winner (Middle)
- recommended·8th grade · Virginiasource: Virginia Readers' Choice past winners, 1999-2000 winner (Middle)
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Common questions
- What grade level is Spirit Seeker?
- Spirit Seeker is listed for grades 6–8. It appears on 1 state book-award list across 1 state. Exact placement varies by school and district.
- How long does it take to read Spirit Seeker?
- It takes about 3h 35m to read Spirit Seeker (197 pages) at an average adult reading pace of about 250 words per minute — roughly 215 minutes. Faster or slower readers will vary; the estimate is a planning guide for assigning the book.
- What curricula assign Spirit Seeker?
- Spirit Seeker appears on reading lists for Virginia Readers' Choice. Each assignment on this site links to its primary-source citation.
- Is Spirit Seeker banned in schools?
- Spirit Seeker 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. See the banned books list by state.
- What themes does Spirit Seeker explore?
- Central themes in Spirit Seeker include extrasensory perception, mystery and detective stories, detective and mystery stories.
Why this book is on this list
How we classifyHide
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 6–8 — drawn from the state book-award lists citing this book.
- Curriculum alignment
- Cited in 1 curriculum on this site (see “Where recommended” above for primary-source links).
- State-level evidence
- On state book-award lists in 1 state (see citations above).
- Removal / banning records
- No tracked removal or challenge records in cited sources.
- Seasonal / contextual tags
- Tagged for: book-club.