Recently, there has been a growing literature trend where books containing graphic and sexually explicit content are presented with cutely-animated covers and titles that make them appear to be kid-friendly or lighthearted reads. As a result, young and impressionable audiences are being drawn to such content, oftentimes without knowledge of the books’ explicit nature. While we recognize there is an audience for explicit themes in literature, we think there should be a better distinction between literary content aimed at younger audiences, and those featuring heavily explicit themes meant for adults. Drawing on what has been created for films and music, a standard rating system should be put in place for all literary works.

When it comes to other forms of media, particularly music and film, content warnings and rating systems are common. When a parent takes their kid to see a movie, it’s usually clear what they’re getting themselves into, as films are rated based on how appropriate the content is for younger audiences. When a parent goes to buy their kid an album, it’s clear whether or not the record contains explicit material since every explicit album is marked with a “parental advisory” sticker. However, this is not the case with books. 

While a book’s title or cover may hint at what kind of story is being told, they can often be misleading, and result in content being consumed by the wrong audience. This is why we see the need for a maturity rating system for books so that audiences can better know what to expect before reading or purchasing a book. Despite parental guidance being available, we feel that resources shouldn’t have to be sought out by those looking to be informed– rather, content warnings and ratings should be readily available and visible. 

According to a 2020 study published by the National Institute of Health, there is a proven correlation between exposure to sexually explicit media exposure in early adolescence and risky sexual behavior. The study shows how media exposure can be linked to early sexual experiences, unsafe sex (leading to unwanted pregnancies and STIs) and even mental struggles, such as depression. This illustrates the very real consequences tied to youth running across inappropriate material, unmonitored, which, especially in the digital age, raises several alarm bells for us. 

The study’s authors recommend early education on media literacy, which we definitely agree with. However, this simple plan is based on a one-size-fits-all approach that, in our opinion, can’t appropriately solve such a widespread issue. Many books, such as “It Happened One Summer” by Tessa Bailey, are regarded as sweet romance books, based on their title and innocent, playful-looking covers. However, upon reading, the books’ content quickly becomes very sexual and graphic. While the books are technically targeted toward an adult audience, we challenge whether the line regarding age-appropriate content is drawn clearly enough based on a first impression of their covers.

Our solution is the creation of a book rating system. Libraries and bookstores often separate content based on age group, by having kid sections, teen offerings and adult areas. We propose that books should be clearly marked by their recommended reading age. Whether that be up to the decision of beta readers based on established criteria, or a formal board and application process developed through major publishers, we feel that streamlining an approach to what levels of inappropriate content can be expected would be beneficial in preventing youth exposure to arguably dangerous or otherwise negatively influential content. 

To give an example, the Motion Picture Association seems to have their similar system all figured out. Having rated nearly 30,000 films since 1968, they’ve long been a model for categorizing the age-friendliness of media, and their website details this model as follows.

• General Audiences (G): Nothing that would offend parents for viewing by children
• Parental Guidance Suggested (PG): May contain some material parents might not like for young children
• Parents Strongly Cautioned (PG-13): Some material may be inappropriate for pre-teenagers
• Restricted (R): Contains some adult material
• No One 17 and Under Admitted (NC-17): Clearly adult, children not admitted

In the music world, they have “Parental Advisory: Explicit Content” (PAL) warnings, which are often featured on album covers’ graphics. The Recording Industry Association of America defines the warnings as a voluntary initiative between record companies and artists that can assist parents and guardians in being more informed on what media they choose to consume. This same model could be implemented for literature by featuring a warning on the cover, which would serve as a caution for families, retailers and ebook providers to ensure that content marked as mature is clearly separated from general audience content.

In a time when younger generations have unregulated access to many forms of media online, it is important that both youths and their parents can be informed about what content is inside a book, and whether or not it is suitable for the individual. Implementing a book rating system similar to those in place for other forms of popular media can help steer young readers toward genres and authors that are appropriate for their stage of maturity and development. We believe this could  decrease young audiences’ exposure to explicit content, and could ultimately improve the younger generation’s engagement with reading in appropriate genres.