We've got your back. With the Tough-O-Meter, you'll know whether to bring extra layers or Swiss army knives as you summit the literary mountain. (10 = Toughest)
(3) Base Camp
Red Scarf Girl is an autobiography written from the perspective of a fourteen-year-old. Ji-li is open with us, and her writing style is easy to understand; she also uses enough detail to make us understand what life is like for her in China in the 1960s. So while she's writing from a difference place and time—which you might not know much about—it all goes down pretty easily once you start reading. Yay.