What books are similar to Anthony Burns?

The 10 closest matches to Anthony Burns by Virginia Hamilton on ReadingList include M.C. Higgins, the Great, Sweet Whispers, Brother Rush, A Chair for My Mother, A Little Fear, and A Visit to William Blake's Inn. Each is scored on shared themes, shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 4–10), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.

Are books like Anthony Burns reading-level appropriate?

Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 4–10), 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.

Books like Anthony Burns

If you liked Anthony Burns, read M.C. Higgins, the Great, Sweet Whispers, Brother Rush, or A Chair for My Mother — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared award lists and reading level.

Looking for books like Anthony Burns by Virginia Hamilton (Children's · grades 4–10)? 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 4–10 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

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Why each is a match

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M.C. Higgins, the Greatgrades 4–9: Is by Virginia Hamilton, the same author, both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, and same genre (Children's). Amazon → books like this →
Sweet Whispers, Brother Rushgrades 4–9: Is by Virginia Hamilton, the same author, both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, and same genre (Children's). Amazon → books like this →
A Chair for My Mothergrades K–5: Both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (K–5). Amazon → books like this →
A Little Feargrades 4–9: Both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (4–9). Amazon → books like this →
A Visit to William Blake's Inngrades K–5: Both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (K–5). Amazon → books like this →
Auks, Rocks, and the Odd Dinosaurgrades 4–10: Both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (4–10). Amazon → books like this →
Behind Barbed Wiregrades 4–10: Both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (4–10). Amazon → books like this →
Conrad's Wargrades 4–9: Both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (4–9). Amazon → books like this →
Mama Don't Allow 25th Anniversary Editiongrades K–5: Both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (K–5). Amazon → books like this →
Outside Over Theregrades K–5: Both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (K–5). Amazon → books like this →

Books like Anthony Burns for younger readers (K–2)

Closest matches whose grade range overlaps K–2— same scoring, different audience.

Shy Charles by Rosemary Wells · grades K–5 — Both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (K–5).
"Let's Get a Pup!", Said Kate by Bob Graham · grades K–5 — Both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (K–5).
And If the Moon Could Talk by Kate Banks · grades K–5 — Both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (K–5).
Anno's Alphabet by Mitsumasa Anno · grades K–5 — Both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (K–5).
Anno's Journey by Mitsumasa Anno · grades K–5 — Both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (K–5).

Books like Anthony Burns for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

Playing Beatie Bow by Ruth Park · grades 4–9 — Both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (4–9).
Shy Charles by Rosemary Wells · grades K–5 — Both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (K–5).
The Moves Make the Man by Bruce Brooks · grades 4–9 — Both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (4–9).
The Weaver's Gift by Kathryn Lasky · grades 4–10 — Both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (4–10).
"Let's Get a Pup!", Said Kate by Bob Graham · grades K–5 — Both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (K–5).

Books like Anthony Burns for middle school (grades 6–8)

Closest matches whose grade range overlaps 6–8— same scoring, different audience.

Playing Beatie Bow by Ruth Park · grades 4–9 — Both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (4–9).
The Moves Make the Man by Bruce Brooks · grades 4–9 — Both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (4–9).
The Weaver's Gift by Kathryn Lasky · grades 4–10 — Both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (4–10).
A Drop of Water: A Book of Science and Wonder by Walter Wick · grades 4–10 — Both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (4–10).
A Scar like a River by Lisa Graff · grades 4–9 — Both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (4–9).

Books like Anthony Burns for high school & teens (grades 9–12)

Closest matches whose grade range overlaps 9–12— same scoring, different audience.

Playing Beatie Bow by Ruth Park · grades 4–9 — Both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (4–9).
The Moves Make the Man by Bruce Brooks · grades 4–9 — Both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (4–9).
The Weaver's Gift by Kathryn Lasky · grades 4–10 — Both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (4–10).
A Drop of Water: A Book of Science and Wonder by Walter Wick · grades 4–10 — Both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (4–10).
A Scar like a River by Lisa Graff · grades 4–9 — Both on the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (4–9).

Common questions

What books are similar to Anthony Burns?: The 10 closest matches to Anthony Burns by Virginia Hamilton on ReadingList include M.C. Higgins, the Great, Sweet Whispers, Brother Rush, A Chair for My Mother, A Little Fear, and A Visit to William Blake's Inn. Each is scored on shared themes, shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 4–10), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.
Are books like Anthony Burns reading-level appropriate?: Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 4–10), 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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