Books like Almost Astronauts

If you liked Almost Astronauts, read The Good, the Bad, and the Barbie: A Doll's History and Her Impact on Us, An American Plague, or Black Potatoes — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared award lists and reading level.

Looking for books like Almost Astronauts by Tanya Lee Stone? The 10 titles below are the closest matches in the ReadingList database — each scored on shared themes, shared award lists, genre, and reading level, and each linked to the curricula, states, and grades where it’s assigned, with primary sources.

These are reading-level matches, not just topical ones — so the picks stay grade-appropriate for a grades 5–9 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

10 books similar to Almost Astronauts

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Why each is a match

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The Good, the Bad, and the Barbie: A Doll's History and Her Impact on Usgrades 4–10
Is by Tanya Lee Stone, the same author, overlapping grades (4–10), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
An American Plaguegrades 6–10
Both on the Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal list, overlapping grades (6–10), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
Black Potatoesgrades 6–10
Both on the Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal list, overlapping grades (6–10), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
Bomb: The Race to Build—and Steal—the World's Most Dangerous Weapon920L
Both on the Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal list, overlapping grades (6–9), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
Funny Bonesgrades 2–5
Both on the Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal list, overlapping grades (2–5), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
Kakapo Rescuegrades 4–7
Both on the Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal list, overlapping grades (4–7), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
March Book Threegrades 9–12
Both on the Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal list, overlapping grades (9–12), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
The Girl Who Drew Butterfliesgrades 5–9
Both on the Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal list, overlapping grades (5–9), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
The Voice That Challenged a Nationgrades 6–10
Both on the Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal list, overlapping grades (6–10), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
The Wallgrades 5–9
Both on the Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal list, overlapping grades (5–9), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →

Books like Almost Astronauts for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

Closest matches whose grade range overlaps 3–5— same scoring, different audience.

  • Balloons over Broadway by Melissa Sweet · grades 1–4 — Both on the Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal list and the same era (2010s).
  • Fry Bread by Kevin Noble Maillard · grades K–3 — Both on the Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal list and the same era (2010s).
  • Twelve Days in May by Larry Dane Brimner · grades 4–8 — Both on the Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal list, overlapping grades (4–8), and the same era (2010s).

Common questions

What books are similar to Almost Astronauts?
The 10 closest matches to Almost Astronauts by Tanya Lee Stone on ReadingList include The Good, the Bad, and the Barbie: A Doll's History and Her Impact on Us, An American Plague, Black Potatoes, Bomb: The Race to Build—and Steal—the World's Most Dangerous Weapon, and Funny Bones. Each is scored on shared themes, shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 5–9), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.
Are books like Almost Astronauts reading-level appropriate?
Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 5–9), so the picks stay grade-appropriate. See how ReadingList judges text difficulty on the /standard methodology page.
How does ReadingList choose similar books?
Matches are ranked by shared themes, shared award and reading-program lists (two books picked for the same state award were chosen by the same committees for the same readers), same genre, comparable Lexile and grade band, and publication decade — computed from cited public curriculum data, not editorial opinion or AI-generated summaries.

Book data last updated 2026-09-05. Matches are computed from each book’s cited attributes — see the methodology.

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