Cover of Airborn

Airborn

by Kenneth Oppel

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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:Virginia Readers' Choice

Airborn by Kenneth Oppel is assigned in US schools at grades 6–8. 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 Airborn 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 6–8
Age range
Ages 11–13
Pages
433
Reading time
about 7h 55m (est.)
First published
1997
Genre
Fantasy
ISBN-13
9780060531805

New to these terms? Reading levels by grade

More formats & details

Other formats on Amazon: Kindle · Audiobook

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About this book

Sailing toward dawn, and I was perched atop the crow's nest, being the ship's eyes. We were two nights out of Sydney, and there'd been no weather to speak of so far. I was keeping watch on a dark stack of nimbus clouds off to the northwest, but we were leaving it far behind, and it looked to be smooth going all the way back to Lionsgate City. Like riding a cloud. . . .Matt Cruse is a cabin boy on the Aurora, a huge airship that sails hundreds of feet above the ocean, ferrying wealthy passengers from city to city.

Similar grade-level books

See all books like Airborn→ — matched on theme + reading level.

Why widely assigned

This Fantasy title, typically at grades 6–8. Written in the 1990s; pairs with curriculum units on animals and pirates; cited across 1 curriculum framework.

Themes

animals · pirates · science fiction · imaginary creatures

Where this book is assigned

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Common questions

What grade level is Airborn?
Airborn is most commonly assigned in US schools in grades 6–8. 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 Airborn?
It takes about 7h 55m to read Airborn (433 pages) at an average adult reading pace of about 250 words per minute — roughly 475 minutes. Faster or slower readers will vary; the estimate is a planning guide for assigning the book.
What curricula assign Airborn?
Airborn appears on reading lists for Virginia Readers' Choice. Each assignment on this site links to its primary-source citation.
Is Airborn banned in schools?
Airborn 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 Airborn explore?
Central themes in Airborn include animals, pirates, science fiction, imaginary creatures. 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 6–8 — 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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