To establish criteria for the selection of appropriate reading materials for adult beginning readers, a study was conducted to determine such readers' instructional level and ability to answer literal and higher level questions in three types of materials: narrative, familiar content, and unfamiliar content. Twenty-one adult learners reading at the first through fifth grade levels read narrative selections from each of the three types of materials then answered eight passage-dependent questions. Instructional level in each type of material was defined as the highest level at which the subject responded correctly to five out of eight questions. The results indicated that instructional levels in the three types of materials were significantly different: the instructional level for unfamiliar content materials was lower than the levels for narrative and familiar content materials. In all three types of materials, adult beginning readers scored significantly higher on literal level questions. The results indicated that the teachers who recommended the subjects had either over- or underestimated the general reading instructional level of almost half the students with most overestimating the level. The findings suggest that teachers of adult beginning readers need to be taught more accurate means of assessing reading instructional materials. (HTH)