Animal Farm

About this book

Animals on a British farm overthrow their human owner and establish a cooperative state run by the pigs, led by Napoleon. As the regime consolidates, its revolutionary principles are rewritten and its dissenters disappear. Orwell's short allegory of the Russian Revolution is widely assigned at middle- and early high-school level alongside propaganda and rhetoric units.

Why widely assigned

This Allegorical Fiction title, reads at high-school literary complexity, typically at grades 7–10. Written in the 1940s; pairs with curriculum units on revolution and power and propaganda; cited across 2 curriculum frameworks.

Where this book is assigned

• AP English Literature & Composition

  • recommended·11th gradesource: AP Lit representative text — allegory unit

• Common Core State Standards (ELA)

  • recommended·8th grade · Texassource: TEKS grade 8 commonly taught text
  • recommended·9th gradesource: CCSS ELA Appendix B, grades 9-10 exemplar
  • recommended·9th gradesource: Common Core aligned summer-reading list — rising 9th grade

Similar grade-level books

• 
  The Outsiders
  S.E. Hinton · 750L
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  Lord of the Flies
  William Golding · 770L
• 
  The Great Gatsby
  F. Scott Fitzgerald · 1070L
• 
  1984
  George Orwell · 1090L

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

Common questions

What grade level is Animal Farm?

Animal Farm is most commonly assigned in US schools in grades 7–10, with a Lexile measure of 1170L. Specific grade placement varies by curriculum — AP Literature and IB English Literature typically use it in grades 11-12.

What is the Lexile level of Animal Farm?

Animal Farm has a Lexile measure of 1170L according to MetaMetrics. Lexile measures text complexity, not content maturity — check the grade range and content notes separately for age-appropriateness.

How long does it take to read Animal Farm?

It takes about 2h 5m to read Animal Farm (112 pages) at an average adult reading pace of about 250 words per minute — roughly 125 minutes. Faster or slower readers will vary; the estimate is a planning guide for assigning the book.

Is Animal Farm hard to read for 7th grade?

At 1170L, Animal Farm falls within the typical 925–1185L text-complexity range for 7th grade (Common Core Appendix A) — a grade-appropriate reading challenge. Lexile measures text complexity, not thematic maturity — check the content notes for age-appropriateness separately.

What curricula assign Animal Farm?

Animal Farm appears on reading lists for AP English Literature & Composition, Common Core State Standards (ELA). Each assignment on this site links to its primary-source citation.