Cover of Railhead

Railhead

by Philip Reeve

Assigned across 1 curriculum list

Railhead by Philip Reeve is assigned in US schools at grades 5–12. It appears across 1 curriculum reference, sourced from state DOE pages and AP/IB/Common Core syllabi. Every citation below links to the primary source.

This page shows where Railhead 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 5–12
Pages
311
Reading time
about 5h 40m (est.)
First published
2015
Genre
Science Fiction & Fantasy
ISBN-13
9780192742773
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About this book

Shortlisted for the CILIP Carnegie Medal 2017! Step Aboard - the Universe is Waiting. The Great Network is a place of drones and androids, Hive Monks and Station Angels. The place of the thousand gates, where sentient trains criss-cross the galaxy in a heartbeat. It is also a place of great dangers - especially for someone who rides the rails and rides his luck the way Zen Starling does. Once Zen was just a petty thief, stealing to support his family and living by his wits. Now everything has changed. Zen is still a thief - but it could be that the key to the whole universe rests on finding out what else he is . . .

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Why widely assigned

This Science Fiction & Fantasy title, typically at grades 5–12. Written in the 2010s; cited across 1 curriculum framework.

Where this book is assigned

Common questions

What grade level is Railhead?
Railhead is most commonly assigned in US schools in grades 5–12. 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 Railhead?
It takes about 5h 40m to read Railhead (311 pages) at an average adult reading pace of about 250 words per minute — roughly 340 minutes. Faster or slower readers will vary; the estimate is a planning guide for assigning the book.
What curricula assign Railhead?
Railhead appears on reading lists for Andre Norton Award for Middle Grade & Young Adult Fiction. Each assignment on this site links to its primary-source citation.
Is Railhead banned in schools?
Railhead 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.

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
Not classified — this book has no published Lexile measure.
Grade band
Grades 5–12 — 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
Not yet documented in a state-level framework on this site.
Removal / banning records
No tracked removal or challenge records in cited sources.
Seasonal / contextual tags
Tagged for: read-aloud.
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