What books are similar to Mick Harte Was Here?

The 10 closest matches to Mick Harte Was Here by Barbara Park on ReadingList include The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise, A Boy Called Bat, Dear Mr. Henshaw, Drums, Girls & Dangerous Pie, and Shiloh. Each is scored on shared themes (grief, family, and safety), 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 Mick Harte Was Here 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 Mick Harte Was Here

If you liked Mick Harte Was Here, read The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise, A Boy Called Bat, or Dear Mr. Henshaw — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Looking for books like Mick Harte Was Here by Barbara Park (Realistic Fiction · grades 5–8)? It’s most often read for its themes of grief, family, and safety. 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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The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrisegrades 5–8: Shares themes of grief and family, both on the Rebecca Caudill Young Readers' Book Award list (+1 more shared list), and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon →
A Boy Called Batgrades 3–5: Shares themes of family, both on the Connecticut Nutmeg Book Award list (+1 more shared list), and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon →
Dear Mr. Henshawgrades 4–6: Shares themes of grief and family, both on the Vermont Golden Dome Book Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon →
Drums, Girls & Dangerous Piegrades 6–9: Shares themes of family, both on the Grand Canyon Reader Award (Arizona) — formerly the Arizona Young Readers Award list (+1 more shared list), and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon →
Shiloh890L: Shares themes of family, both on the Connecticut Nutmeg Book Award list (+7 more shared lists), and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon →
So B. Itgrades 5–8: Shares themes of family, both on the Rebecca Caudill Young Readers' Book Award list (+2 more shared lists), and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon →
Front Desk640L: Shares themes of family, both on the Rebecca Caudill Young Readers' Book Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon →
Ghost Boys360L: Shares themes of family, both on the William Allen White Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon →
Hope in the Valleygrades 3–6: Shares themes of grief and family, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (3–6). Amazon →
Long Way Down720L: Shares themes of grief and family, both on the North Dakota Flicker Tale Children's Book Award list, and overlapping grades (7–12). Amazon →

Books like Mick Harte Was Here 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 — Shares themes of family, both on the Grand Canyon Reader Award (Arizona) — formerly the Arizona Young Readers Award list (+1 more shared list), and overlapping grades (2–5).
Dadaji's Paintbrush by Rashmi Sirdeshpande · grades K–3 — Shares themes of grief and family.
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, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (2–8).
Counting by 7s by Holly Goldberg Sloan · grades 2–8 — Same genre (Realistic Fiction), overlapping grades (2–8), and the same era (2010s).
Here Comes the Garbage Barge by Jonah Winter · grades 2–8 — Same genre (Realistic Fiction), overlapping grades (2–8), and the same era (2010s).

Books like Mick Harte Was Here for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

The Crossover by Kwame Alexander · 750L — Shares themes of grief and family, both on the Rebecca Caudill Young Readers' Book Award list, and overlapping grades (5–8).
Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech · 770L — Shares themes of grief and family, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (5–7).
Attaboy, Sam! by Lois Lowry · grades 4–6 — Shares themes of family, both on the Iowa Children's Choice Award (ICCA) list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction).
Ghost by Jason Reynolds · 730L — Both on the Connecticut Nutmeg Book Award list (+2 more shared lists), same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (5–8).
Old Yeller by Fred Gipson · grades 5–8 — Shares themes of grief and family, both on the William Allen White Children's Book Award list, and overlapping grades (5–8).

Books like Mick Harte Was Here for middle school (grades 6–8)

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

Ruby Lost and Found by Christina Li · grades 6–9 — Shares themes of grief and family, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (6–9).
The Crossover by Kwame Alexander · 750L — Shares themes of grief and family, both on the Rebecca Caudill Young Readers' Book Award list, and overlapping grades (5–8).
Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech · 770L — Shares themes of grief and family, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (5–7).
Attaboy, Sam! by Lois Lowry · grades 4–6 — Shares themes of family, both on the Iowa Children's Choice Award (ICCA) list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction).
Forged by Fire by Sharon M. Draper · grades 7–10 — Shares themes of family, both on the Young Hoosier Book Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction).

Books like Mick Harte Was Here for high school & teens (grades 9–12)

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

Ruby Lost and Found by Christina Li · grades 6–9 — Shares themes of grief and family, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (6–9).
Forged by Fire by Sharon M. Draper · grades 7–10 — Shares themes of family, both on the Young Hoosier Book Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction).
Orbiting Jupiter by Gary D. Schmidt · grades 7–10 — Both on the Connecticut Nutmeg Book Award list (+2 more shared lists), same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (7–10).
Refugee by Alan Gratz · 800L — Shares themes of family, both on the Dorothy Canfield Fisher / Vermont Golden Dome Book Award list (+5 more shared lists), and overlapping grades (5–9).
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares · grades 7–10 — Shares themes of family, both on the Young Hoosier Book Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction).

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

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