Slaughterhouse-Five
by Kurt Vonnegut
Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut is assigned in US schools at grades 11–12, with a Lexile measure of 850L. It appears across 2 curriculum references 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 Slaughterhouse-Five is assigned in US schools — curricula, states, grades, and the primary-source citations behind each placement. Not a summary or study guide.
- Lexile
- 850L
- Grade range
- Grades 11–12
- Difficulty for grade
- Below the grade 11–CCR band (1185–1385L)
- Age range
- Ages 16–18
- Pages
- 275
- Reading time
- about 5h 5m (est.)
- First published
- 1969
- Genre
- Literary Fiction
- ISBN-13
- 9780385333849
Reading difficulty: At 850L, Slaughterhouse-Five reads below the typical 1185–1385L text-complexity range for 11th grade (Common Core Appendix A). It is an accessible read for the grade — often assigned for its themes and discussion value rather than for reading challenge.
Where to find this book
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About this book
Billy Pilgrim, an American optometrist who survived the Allied firebombing of Dresden as a World War II POW, becomes "unstuck in time" and relives his life out of order. Vonnegut's anti-war novel is a frequent AP Literature text and one of the ALA's most frequently challenged books of the 21st century.
Why widely assigned
This Literary Fiction title, reads at middle-grade prose complexity, typically at grades 11–12. Written in the 1960s; pairs with curriculum units on trauma and time and war and meaning; cited across 2 curriculum frameworks.
Themes
trauma and time · war and meaning · free will · narrative fragmentation · death and dark humor
Content notes
war violence · firebombing · sexual content · profanity · suicide
Common Sense Media recommends age 16+.
Where this book is assigned
AP English Literature & Composition
Common Core State Standards (ELA)
Similar grade-level books
Lord of the FliesWilliam Golding · 770L
The Great GatsbyF. Scott Fitzgerald · 1070L
1984George Orwell · 1090L
Fahrenheit 451Ray Bradbury · 890L
See all books like Slaughterhouse-Five→ — matched on theme + reading level.
Common questions
- What grade level is Slaughterhouse-Five?
- Slaughterhouse-Five is most commonly assigned in US schools in grades 11–12, with a Lexile measure of 850L. 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 Slaughterhouse-Five?
- Slaughterhouse-Five has a Lexile measure of 850L 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 Slaughterhouse-Five?
- It takes about 5h 5m to read Slaughterhouse-Five (275 pages) at an average adult reading pace of about 250 words per minute — roughly 305 minutes. Faster or slower readers will vary; the estimate is a planning guide for assigning the book.
- Is Slaughterhouse-Five hard to read for 11th grade?
- At 850L, Slaughterhouse-Five reads below the typical 1185–1385L text-complexity range for 11th grade (Common Core Appendix A). It is an accessible read for the grade — often assigned for its themes and discussion value rather than for reading challenge. Lexile measures text complexity, not thematic maturity — check the content notes for age-appropriateness separately.
- What curricula assign Slaughterhouse-Five?
- Slaughterhouse-Five 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.
Why this book is on this list
Each dimension below is sourced from a public reference. The full framework is documented on the classification standard page.
- Lexile measure
- 850L — sourced from MetaMetrics’ Lexile Hub.
- Grade band
- Grades 11–12 — drawn from state ELA frameworks and AP/IB syllabi citing this book.
- Curriculum alignment
- Cited in 2 curricula 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
- Documented as challenged or removed in 4 states per PEN America’s Index of School Book Bans.
- Seasonal / contextual tags
- No seasonal or program-specific tags on this book.