What books are similar to Ghost Boys?

The 10 closest matches to Ghost Boys by Jewell Parker Rhodes on ReadingList include Front Desk, Blended, Ghost, The Crossover, and Walk Two Moons. Each is scored on shared themes (race, justice, and family), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 4–7), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.

Are books like Ghost Boys reading-level appropriate?

Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 4–7), 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 Ghost Boys

If you liked Ghost Boys, read Front Desk, Blended, or Ghost — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Looking for books like Ghost Boys by Jewell Parker Rhodes (Realistic Fiction · 360L · grades 4–7)? It’s most often read for its themes of race, justice, 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 4–7 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

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Why each is a match

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Front Desk640L: Shares themes of race and family, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award (Michigan Reading Association) list (+2 more shared lists), and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon →
Blended610L: Shares themes of race, family, and identity, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award (Michigan Reading Association) list, and a close reading level (610L vs 360L). Amazon →
Ghost730L: Shares themes of identity, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award (Michigan Reading Association) list (+3 more shared lists), and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon →
The Crossover750L: Shares themes of family and identity, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award (Michigan Reading Association) list (+2 more shared lists), and overlapping grades (5–8). Amazon →
Walk Two Moons770L: Shares themes of family and identity, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award (Michigan Reading Association) list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon →
Bud, Not Buddy950L: Shares themes of race, family, and identity, both on the William Allen White Children's Book Award list, and overlapping grades (4–7). Amazon →
Black Brother, Black Brothergrades 5–8: Shares themes of justice and identity, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award (Michigan Reading Association) list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon →
So B. Itgrades 5–8: Shares themes of family and identity, both on the William Allen White Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon →
The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrisegrades 5–8: Shares themes of family, both on the William Allen White Children's Book Award list (+1 more shared list), and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon →
One Crazy Summer750L: Shares themes of race and family, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award (Michigan Reading Association) list, and overlapping grades (5–8). Amazon →

Books like Ghost Boys for younger readers (K–2)

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

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, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award (Michigan Reading Association) list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction).
Dog Man by Dav Pilkey · 390L — Shares themes of identity and a close reading level (390L vs 360L).
Counting by 7s by Holly Goldberg Sloan · grades 2–8 — Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award (Michigan Reading Association) list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (2–8).
Here Comes the Garbage Barge by Jonah Winter · grades 2–8 — Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award (Michigan Reading Association) list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (2–8).
Lulu's Mysterious Mission by Judith Viorst · grades 2–8 — Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award (Michigan Reading Association) list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (2–8).

Books like Ghost Boys for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

Dear Mr. Henshaw by Beverly Cleary · grades 4–6 — Shares themes of family and identity, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–6).
Invisible Isabel by Sally J. Pla · grades 3–6 — Shares themes of family and identity, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (3–6).
Mick Harte Was Here by Barbara Park · grades 5–8 — Shares themes of family, both on the William Allen White Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction).
Stand Up, Yumi Chung by Jessica Kim · grades 4–7 — Shares themes of family and identity, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–7).
Stuntboy, In-Between Time by Jason Reynolds · grades 3–6 — Shares themes of family and identity, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (3–6).

Books like Ghost Boys for middle school (grades 6–8)

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

The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo · 800L — Shares themes of family and identity and both on the Oregon Reader's Choice Award (ORCA) list.
Dear Mr. Henshaw by Beverly Cleary · grades 4–6 — Shares themes of family and identity, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–6).
Invisible Isabel by Sally J. Pla · grades 3–6 — Shares themes of family and identity, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (3–6).
Mick Harte Was Here by Barbara Park · grades 5–8 — Shares themes of family, both on the William Allen White Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction).
Ruby Lost and Found by Christina Li · grades 6–9 — Shares themes of family and identity, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (6–9).

Books like Ghost Boys for high school & teens (grades 9–12)

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

The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo · 800L — Shares themes of family and identity and both on the Oregon Reader's Choice Award (ORCA) list.
Ruby Lost and Found by Christina Li · grades 6–9 — Shares themes of family and identity, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (6–9).
Divergent by Veronica Roth · grades 8–12 — Shares themes of identity and both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award (Michigan Reading Association) list (+1 more shared list).
Touching Spirit Bear by Ben Mikaelsen · grades 6–9 — Shares themes of justice, both on the Nebraska Golden Sower Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction).
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas · 590L — Shares themes of race and family and a close reading level (590L vs 360L).

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

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