Books like Freak the Mighty

If you liked Freak the Mighty, read A Royal Conundrum, Crash, or The Last Musketeer — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes and reading level.

Looking for books like Freak the Mighty by W. R. Philbrick (Adventure · grades 6–9)? It’s most often read for its themes of learning disabilities, people with disabilities, and friendship. 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 6–9 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

10 books similar to Freak the Mighty

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Why each is a match

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A Royal Conundrumgrades 3–6
Shares themes of friendship, same genre (Adventure), and overlapping grades (3–6). Amazon → books like this →
Crashgrades 3–8
Shares themes of friendship, same genre (Adventure), and overlapping grades (3–8). Amazon → books like this →
The Last Musketeergrades 4–7
Shares themes of friendship, same genre (Adventure), and overlapping grades (4–7). Amazon → books like this →
Closed for the Seasongrades 3–8
Shares themes of friendship, both on the Nebraska Golden Sower Award list, and overlapping grades (3–8). Amazon → books like this →
Flight #116 Is Down!grades 3–8
Both on the Nebraska Golden Sower Award list, same genre (Adventure), and overlapping grades (3–8). Amazon → books like this →
Heart of a Championgrades 6–8
Shares themes of friendship, both on the Nebraska Golden Sower Award list, and overlapping grades (6–8). Amazon → books like this →
Run, Hide, Fight Backgrades 6–9
Both on the Nebraska Golden Sower Award list, same genre (Adventure), and overlapping grades (6–9). Amazon → books like this →
The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book 1)740L
Shares themes of friendship, both on the Nebraska Golden Sower Award list, and overlapping grades (4–7). Amazon → books like this →
Two Degreesgrades 5–8
Both on the Nebraska Golden Sower Award list, same genre (Adventure), and overlapping grades (5–8). Amazon → books like this →
Wonder790L
Shares themes of friendship, both on the Nebraska Golden Sower Award list, and overlapping grades (3–7). Amazon → books like this →

Books like Freak the Mighty for younger readers (K–2)

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

Books like Freak the Mighty for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

  • Geronimo Stilton: Lost Treasure of the Emerald Eye by Geronimo Stilton · 530L — Shares themes of friendship and same genre (Adventure).
  • Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo · 610L — Shares themes of friendship and both on the Nebraska Golden Sower Award list.
  • Jaguar by Roland Smith · grades 3–5 — Both on the Nebraska Golden Sower Award list and same genre (Adventure).
  • Rescue Josh McGuire by Ben Mikaelsen · grades 3–5 — Both on the Nebraska Golden Sower Award list and same genre (Adventure).
  • Rugby and Rosie by Nan Parson Rossiter · grades K–3 — Shares themes of friendship and both on the Nebraska Golden Sower Award list.

Books like Freak the Mighty for middle school (grades 6–8)

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

  • Hatchet by Gary Paulsen · 1020L — Same genre (Adventure), overlapping grades (5–8), and the same era (1980s).
  • My Teacher Is an Alien by Bruce Coville · grades 3–6 — Shares themes of friendship and overlapping grades (3–6).
  • Number the Stars by Lois Lowry · 670L — Shares themes of friendship and overlapping grades (4–7).
  • The BFG by Roald Dahl · 720L — Shares themes of friendship and overlapping grades (3–6).
  • The Cybil War by Betsy Byars · grades 3–6 — Shares themes of friendship and overlapping grades (3–6).

Books like Freak the Mighty for high school & teens (grades 9–12)

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

  • Drama by Raina Telgemeier · grades 5–9 — Shares themes of friendship and overlapping grades (5–9).
  • Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes · 910L — Shares themes of friendship and overlapping grades (8–11).
  • Four for the Road by K.J. Reilly · grades 9–12 — Shares themes of friendship and overlapping grades (9–12).
  • Michael Vey: The Prisoner of Cell 25 by Richard Paul Evans · grades 6–9 — Shares themes of friendship and overlapping grades (6–9).
  • My Ántonia by Willa Cather · 1010L — Shares themes of friendship.

Common questions

What books are similar to Freak the Mighty?
The 10 closest matches to Freak the Mighty by W. R. Philbrick on ReadingList include A Royal Conundrum, Crash, The Last Musketeer, Closed for the Season, and Flight #116 Is Down!. Each is scored on shared themes (learning disabilities, people with disabilities, and friendship), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 6–9), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.
Are books like Freak the Mighty reading-level appropriate?
Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 6–9), 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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