What books are similar to Cryptid Hunters?

The 10 closest matches to Cryptid Hunters by Roland Smith on ReadingList include Red Midnight, Hatchet, Refugee, The Bad Beginning (A Series of Unfortunate Events #1), and All the Lovely Bad Ones. Each is scored on shared themes (survival, mystery, and family), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 5–8), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.

Are books like Cryptid Hunters reading-level appropriate?

Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 5–8), 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 Cryptid Hunters

If you liked Cryptid Hunters, read Red Midnight, Hatchet, or Refugee — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Looking for books like Cryptid Hunters by Roland Smith (Adventure · grades 5–8)? It’s most often read for its themes of survival, mystery, and family. 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 5–8 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

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Why each is a match

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Red Midnightgrades 3–8: Shares themes of survival, both on the Nevada Young Readers' Award list, and same genre (Adventure). Amazon →
Hatchet1020L: Shares themes of survival, both on the Young Hoosier Book Award list, and same genre (Adventure). Amazon →
Refugee800L: Shares themes of survival and family, both on the Young Hoosier Book Award list, and overlapping grades (5–9). Amazon →
The Bad Beginning (A Series of Unfortunate Events #1)1010L: Shares themes of mystery and family, both on the Nevada Young Readers' Award list, and overlapping grades (4–7). Amazon →
All the Lovely Bad Onesgrades 5–8: Shares themes of mystery and family and overlapping grades (5–8). Amazon →
Geronimo Stilton: Lost Treasure of the Emerald Eye530L: Shares themes of family, same genre (Adventure), and overlapping grades (2–5). Amazon →
Out of My Mind700L: Shares themes of family, both on the Nevada Young Readers' Award list (+1 more shared list), and overlapping grades (4–7). Amazon →
Shiloh890L: Shares themes of family, both on the Nevada Young Readers' Award list (+1 more shared list), and overlapping grades (3–6). Amazon →
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time1090L: Shares themes of mystery and family and overlapping grades (8–12). Amazon →
The Doom Stonegrades 6–9: Shares themes of survival, both on the Nevada Young Readers' Award list (+1 more shared list), and overlapping grades (6–9). Amazon →

Books like Cryptid Hunters for younger readers (K–2)

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

I Survived the Sinking of the Titanic, 1912 by Lauren Tarshis · 590L — Shares themes of survival and family and overlapping grades (2–5).
The Boxcar Children by Gertrude Chandler Warner · 490L — Shares themes of mystery and family.
Down the Rabbit Hole by Peter Abrahams · grades 2–8 — Shares themes of mystery and overlapping grades (2–8).
Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson · grades 2–8 — Shares themes of survival and overlapping grades (2–8).
Ida B. and Her Plans to Maximize Fun, Avoid Disaster, and (Possibly) Save the World by Katherine Hannigan · grades 2–8 — Shares themes of family and overlapping grades (2–8).

Books like Cryptid Hunters for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

Code Name Kingfisher by Liz Kessler · grades 4–8 — Shares themes of survival and family and overlapping grades (4–8).
Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney · 950L — Shares themes of family, both on the Nevada Young Readers' Award list, and overlapping grades (3–7).
Fablehaven by Brandon Mull · grades 4–7 — Shares themes of family, both on the Nevada Young Readers' Award list, and overlapping grades (4–7).
Final Word (The Winterton Deception #1) by Janet Sumner Johnson · grades 3–7 — Shares themes of mystery and family and overlapping grades (3–7).
Fowl Play by Kristin O'Donnell Tubb · grades 3–6 — Shares themes of mystery and family and overlapping grades (3–6).

Books like Cryptid Hunters for middle school (grades 6–8)

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

Code Name Kingfisher by Liz Kessler · grades 4–8 — Shares themes of survival and family and overlapping grades (4–8).
Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney · 950L — Shares themes of family, both on the Nevada Young Readers' Award list, and overlapping grades (3–7).
Fablehaven by Brandon Mull · grades 4–7 — Shares themes of family, both on the Nevada Young Readers' Award list, and overlapping grades (4–7).
Final Word (The Winterton Deception #1) by Janet Sumner Johnson · grades 3–7 — Shares themes of mystery and family and overlapping grades (3–7).
Forged by Fire by Sharon M. Draper · grades 7–10 — Shares themes of family, both on the Young Hoosier Book Award list, and overlapping grades (7–10).

Books like Cryptid Hunters for high school & teens (grades 9–12)

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

How to Survive Your Murder by Danielle Valentine · grades 9–12 — Shares themes of survival, mystery, and family.
Forged by Fire by Sharon M. Draper · grades 7–10 — Shares themes of family, both on the Young Hoosier Book Award list, and overlapping grades (7–10).
Not Quite Dead Yet by Holly Jackson · grades 7–12 — Shares themes of mystery and family and overlapping grades (7–12).
That's Not My Name by Megan Lally · grades 9–12 — Shares themes of survival and mystery.
The Call of the Wild by Jack London · 1120L — Shares themes of survival, same genre (Adventure), and overlapping grades (6–10).

Book data last updated 2026-07-07. Matches are computed from each book’s cited attributes — see the methodology.

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