Airborn, by Ken Oppel
About Airborn
This might not seem like a typical choice for a site focusing on international novels, but it definitely deserves a spot on your shelf. Airborn is a realistic fantasy adventure novel-- if you liked Leviathan, Bloody Jack, or Treasure Island, you'll love Airborn. I could make the case that Airborn is an international novel-- the fictional Lionsgate City is based on the author's home city of Toronto-- but the fictional, almost steampunk world is strange enough.
Airborn follows our hero, the young Matt Cruse. Matt is the youngest cabin boy on the Aurora, a massive luxury airliner-- think Titanic meets 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea meets Around the World in 80 Days. He's dreamed of captaining his own airship ever since he was a child, and he's working towards his dream. His routine is disrupted when the charming and brilliant Kate de Vries books passage aboard the Aurora. Privileged, impulsive, and stubborn, Kate derails Matt as she attempts to track down the mysterious contents of her grandfather's journals, all the while battling pirates, shipwreck, and an insufferable governess.
This book definitely sounds...crazy if we're going by the blurb, but the action-adventure pace and great writing make this book feel much more Indiana Jones and Treasure Island than sci-fi.
Airborn follows our hero, the young Matt Cruse. Matt is the youngest cabin boy on the Aurora, a massive luxury airliner-- think Titanic meets 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea meets Around the World in 80 Days. He's dreamed of captaining his own airship ever since he was a child, and he's working towards his dream. His routine is disrupted when the charming and brilliant Kate de Vries books passage aboard the Aurora. Privileged, impulsive, and stubborn, Kate derails Matt as she attempts to track down the mysterious contents of her grandfather's journals, all the while battling pirates, shipwreck, and an insufferable governess.
This book definitely sounds...crazy if we're going by the blurb, but the action-adventure pace and great writing make this book feel much more Indiana Jones and Treasure Island than sci-fi.
How could I teach Airborn?
Some themes encompassed in Airborn include
- Privilege and ignorance
- The perception of adventure
- Obligation to family
- Obligation to destiny
- Facing fears/Facing past
What are some resources I could use to teach Airborn?
Many of the machines in the novel are based on the designs of Leonardo da Vinci.
Students could engage in further reading about da Vinci. His designs would also
make for wonderful aspects of interdisciplinary collaboration with students'
science classes.
Students could engage in further reading about da Vinci. His designs would also
make for wonderful aspects of interdisciplinary collaboration with students'
science classes.
- Matt seeks admission to the prestigious Airship Academy, which will fast-track him on his path to his goal of being an officer-- however, he lacks the cash and prestige. Students could write a persuasive essay in the form of a letter to the Airship Academy detailing why Matt should be admitted.
- Similarly, Kate has trouble being taken seriously by the prestigious zoological association because she's a female. Students could write a letter to the zoological association from Kate's perspective arguing for equal treatment.
- Matt is affected by the silent film The Epic of Gilgamesh. Students could learn about Gilgamesh and Enkidu to consider how and why the epic would have affected Matt so strongly.
The Verdict
This novel would be so enjoyable with grades 7-9. Any student who appreciates an adventurous storyline will definitely enjoy Airborn. I would be comfortable teaching this in literature circles or as a whole-class novel, but I would absolutely stock this novel in my classroom library for grades 7-12.