Cover of Wayside School Gets a Little Stranger

Wayside School Gets a Little Stranger

by Louis Sachar · Grades 4–6

Wayside School Gets a Little Stranger by Louis Sachar is on US reading lists at grades 4–6. It appears on 5 lists: 5 book-award lists, across 9 states. Every citation below links to the primary source.

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Before you buy: Grades 4–6 · 193 pages. The button opens the paperback edition (ISBN 9781526622099). If the class uses a set edition or translation, match its ISBN first.

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Among the most widely assigned — 5 curriculum lists · 9 states

#41 most-assigned book in America — on school reading lists in 9 states (2026-07-13 study of 13,258 assignments).

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:Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice AwardWisconsin Golden Archer AwardBuckeye Children's & Teen Book AwardYoung Hoosier Book Award+1 more

This page shows where Wayside School Gets a Little Stranger is assigned in US schools — curricula, states, grades, and the primary-source citations behind each placement. Not a summary or study guide.

Reading level at a glance

Grade range
Grades 4–6
Pages
193
Reading time
about 3h 30m (est.)
First published
1995
ISBN-13
9781526622099

Sources: grade range from the cited lists below, last checked 2026-07-07; pages and year from our catalog record (sources); reading time is an estimate at 250 words a minute.

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About this book

Book facts and sources (5)
Award won
  • Massachusetts Children's Book Award, 1997 (source: Goodreads)
On award reading lists
Catalog record
First published 1995 · 193 pages (edition lengths vary) (source: how we source book data)

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Where this book is recommended

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Common questions

What grade level is Wayside School Gets a Little Stranger?
Wayside School Gets a Little Stranger is listed for grades 4–6. It appears on 5 book-award lists across 9 states. Exact placement varies by school and district.
How long does it take to read Wayside School Gets a Little Stranger?
It takes about 3h 30m to read Wayside School Gets a Little Stranger (193 pages) at an average adult reading pace of about 250 words per minute — roughly 210 minutes. Faster or slower readers will vary; the estimate is a planning guide for assigning the book.
What curricula assign Wayside School Gets a Little Stranger?
Wayside School Gets a Little Stranger appears on reading lists for Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award, Massachusetts Children's Book Award, Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award, and 2 others. Each assignment on this site links to its primary-source citation.
Is Wayside School Gets a Little Stranger banned in schools?
Wayside School Gets a Little Stranger 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

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 4–6 — drawn from the book-award lists citing this book.
Curriculum alignment
Cited in 5 curricula on this site (see “Where recommended” above for primary-source links).
State-level evidence
On state book-award lists in 9 states (see citations above).
Removal / banning records
No tracked removal or challenge records in cited sources.
Seasonal / contextual tags
Tagged for: award-winner, book-club, read-aloud.

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