What books are similar to Arnie, the Doughnut?

The 10 closest matches to Arnie, the Doughnut by Laurie Keller on ReadingList include No More Dead Dogs, Dog Breath, The Legend of Rock Paper Scissors, Dear Mrs. LaRue, and Double Fudge. Each is scored on shared themes (humorous stories and doughnuts), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 2–8), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.

Are books like Arnie, the Doughnut reading-level appropriate?

Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 2–8), 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 Arnie, the Doughnut

If you liked Arnie, the Doughnut, read No More Dead Dogs, Dog Breath, or The Legend of Rock Paper Scissors — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Looking for books like Arnie, the Doughnut by Laurie Keller (Humor · grades 2–8)? It’s most often read for its themes of humorous stories and doughnuts. 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 2–8 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

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Why each is a match

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No More Dead Dogsgrades 2–8: Shares themes of humorous stories, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, and same genre (Humor). Amazon → books like this →
Dog Breathgrades 2–8: Shares themes of humorous stories, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, and same genre (Humor). Amazon → books like this →
The Legend of Rock Paper Scissorsgrades 2–8: Shares themes of humorous stories, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, and same genre (Humor). Amazon → books like this →
Dear Mrs. LaRuegrades 3–5: Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (3–5). Amazon → books like this →
Double Fudgegrades 4–6: Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (4–6). Amazon → books like this →
Falling for Rapunzelgrades K–3: Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (K–3). Amazon → books like this →
Knocked Out by Nunga-Nungasgrades 3–5: Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (3–5). Amazon → books like this →
Let's Do Nothinggrades K–3: Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (K–3). Amazon → books like this →
Once Upon a Cool Motorcycle Dudegrades 3–5: Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (3–5). Amazon → books like this →
Rhyming Dust Bunniesgrades K–2: Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (K–2). Amazon → books like this →

Books like Arnie, the Doughnut for younger readers (K–2)

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

Hi! Fly Guy by Tedd Arnold · grades K–1 — Shares themes of humorous stories and same genre (Humor).
Skippyjon Jones by Judith Byron Schachner · grades K–3 — Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (K–3).
Substitute Teacher Plans by Johnson, Doug · grades K–3 — Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (K–3).
The Great Fuzz Frenzy by Janet Stevens · grades K–3 — Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (K–3).
A Lion is a Lion by Polly Dunbar · grades K–0 — Shares themes of humorous stories and same genre (Humor).

Books like Arnie, the Doughnut for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

Skippyjon Jones by Judith Byron Schachner · grades K–3 — Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (K–3).
Substitute Teacher Plans by Johnson, Doug · grades K–3 — Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (K–3).
The Great Fuzz Frenzy by Janet Stevens · grades K–3 — Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (K–3).
Banana Twist by Florence Parry Heide · grades 4–6 — Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (4–6).
Be a Perfect Person in Just Three Days by Stephen Manes · grades 4–6 — Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (4–6).

Books like Arnie, the Doughnut for middle school (grades 6–8)

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

Banana Twist by Florence Parry Heide · grades 4–6 — Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (4–6).
Be a Perfect Person in Just Three Days by Stephen Manes · grades 4–6 — Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (4–6).
My Horrible Secret by Stephen Roos · grades 4–6 — Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (4–6).
Scat by Carl Hiaasen · grades 2–8 — Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (2–8).
Skinnybones by Barbara Park · grades 3–6 — Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (3–6).

Books like Arnie, the Doughnut for high school & teens (grades 9–12)

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

Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging by Louise Rennison · grades 9–12 — Shares themes of humorous stories and same genre (Humor).
A Handful of Dust by Evelyn Waugh · grades 11–12 — Same genre (Humor).
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie · 600L — Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, overlapping grades (7–10), and the same era (2000s).

Common questions

What books are similar to Arnie, the Doughnut?: The 10 closest matches to Arnie, the Doughnut by Laurie Keller on ReadingList include No More Dead Dogs, Dog Breath, The Legend of Rock Paper Scissors, Dear Mrs. LaRue, and Double Fudge. Each is scored on shared themes (humorous stories and doughnuts), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 2–8), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.
Are books like Arnie, the Doughnut reading-level appropriate?: Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 2–8), 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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