What books are similar to Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library?

The 10 closest matches to Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library by Chris Grabenstein on ReadingList include 11 Birthdays, A Million Ways Home, A Night Divided, Allies, and Because of Mr. Terupt. Each is scored on shared themes, shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 4–6), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.

Are books like Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library reading-level appropriate?

Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 4–6), 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 Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library

If you liked Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library, read 11 Birthdays, A Million Ways Home, or A Night Divided — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared award lists and reading level.

Looking for books like Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library by Chris Grabenstein? 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 4–6 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

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Why each is a match

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11 Birthdaysgrades 3–5: Both on the Dorothy Canfield Fisher / Vermont Golden Dome Book Award list (+10 more shared lists), overlapping grades (3–5), and the same era (2010s). Amazon →
A Million Ways Homegrades 4–6: Both on the Mark Twain Readers Award list (+3 more shared lists), overlapping grades (4–6), and the same era (2010s). Amazon →
A Night Dividedgrades 5–8: Both on the California Young Reader Medal list (+3 more shared lists), overlapping grades (5–8), and the same era (2010s). Amazon →
Alliesgrades 5–9: Both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (5–9), and the same era (2010s). Amazon →
Because of Mr. Teruptgrades 3–5: Both on the Grand Canyon Reader Award (Arizona) — formerly the Arizona Young Readers Award list (+3 more shared lists), overlapping grades (3–5), and the same era (2010s). Amazon →
Blended610L: Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award (Michigan Reading Association) list (+2 more shared lists), overlapping grades (3–7), and the same era (2010s). Amazon →
Buddygrades 6–8: Both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (6–8), and the same era (2010s). Amazon →
Dog Man390L: Both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (2–5), and the same era (2010s). Amazon →
Drums, Girls & Dangerous Piegrades 6–9: Both on the Grand Canyon Reader Award (Arizona) — formerly the Arizona Young Readers Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (6–9), and the same era (2010s). Amazon →
Echo680L: Both on the California Young Reader Medal list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (5–8), and the same era (2010s). Amazon →

Books like Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library for younger readers (K–2)

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

Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume · 470L — Both on the Grand Canyon Reader Award (Arizona) — formerly the Arizona Young Readers Award list (+3 more shared lists) and overlapping grades (2–5).
The Mouse and the Motorcycle by Beverly Cleary · 860L — Both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+2 more shared lists) and overlapping grades (2–4).
Are You Ready to Play Outside? by Mo Willems · grades K–2 — Both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list and the same era (2010s).
Balloons over Broadway by Melissa Sweet · grades 1–4 — Both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list, overlapping grades (1–4), and the same era (2010s).
Bink & Gollie by Kate DiCamillo · grades 2–8 — Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award (Michigan Reading Association) list, overlapping grades (2–8), and the same era (2010s).

Books like Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

El Deafo by Cece Bell · 420L — Both on the Dorothy Canfield Fisher / Vermont Golden Dome Book Award list (+8 more shared lists), overlapping grades (4–6), and the same era (2010s).
Escaping the Giant Wave by Peg Kehret · grades 3–6 — Both on the Nebraska Golden Sower Award list (+2 more shared lists), overlapping grades (3–6), and the same era (2010s).
Fish in a Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt · 550L — Both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list (+4 more shared lists), overlapping grades (4–7), and the same era (2010s).
Found by Margaret Peterson Haddix · grades 4–6 — Both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+2 more shared lists), overlapping grades (4–6), and the same era (2010s).
Front Desk by Kelly Yang · 640L — Both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list (+3 more shared lists), overlapping grades (3–7), and the same era (2010s).

Books like Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library for middle school (grades 6–8)

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

Divergent by Veronica Roth · grades 8–12 — Both on the California Young Reader Medal list (+2 more shared lists) and the same era (2010s).
El Deafo by Cece Bell · 420L — Both on the Dorothy Canfield Fisher / Vermont Golden Dome Book Award list (+8 more shared lists), overlapping grades (4–6), and the same era (2010s).
Escaping the Giant Wave by Peg Kehret · grades 3–6 — Both on the Nebraska Golden Sower Award list (+2 more shared lists), overlapping grades (3–6), and the same era (2010s).
Fish in a Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt · 550L — Both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list (+4 more shared lists), overlapping grades (4–7), and the same era (2010s).
Found by Margaret Peterson Haddix · grades 4–6 — Both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+2 more shared lists), overlapping grades (4–6), and the same era (2010s).

Books like Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library for high school & teens (grades 9–12)

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

Divergent by Veronica Roth · grades 8–12 — Both on the California Young Reader Medal list (+2 more shared lists) and the same era (2010s).
Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds · 720L — Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award (Michigan Reading Association) list (+1 more shared list) and the same era (2010s).
Orbiting Jupiter by Gary D. Schmidt · grades 7–10 — Both on the Grand Canyon Reader Award (Arizona) — formerly the Arizona Young Readers Award list (+2 more shared lists) and the same era (2010s).
Refugee by Alan Gratz · 800L — Both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+10 more shared lists), overlapping grades (5–9), and the same era (2010s).
Scythe by Neal Shusterman · grades 7–12 — Both on the California Young Reader Medal list (+4 more shared lists) and the same era (2010s).

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

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