Books like Night

If you liked Night, read Salt to the Sea, The Diary of a Young Girl, or Maus: A Survivor's Tale — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Looking for books like Night by Elie Wiesel (Memoir · 590L · grades 9–12)? It’s most often read for its themes of Holocaust, faith and doubt, and father-son relationships. 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 9–12 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

10 books similar to Night

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Why each is a match

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Salt to the Sea560L
Shares themes of Holocaust and survival and a close reading level (560L vs 590L). Amazon → books like this →
The Diary of a Young Girl1080L
Shares themes of Holocaust, both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list, and same genre (Memoir). Amazon → books like this →
Maus: A Survivor's Talegrades 9–12
Shares themes of Holocaust and survival, both on the AP English Literature & Composition list (+1 more shared list), and overlapping grades (9–12). Amazon → books like this →
The Book Thief730L
Shares themes of Holocaust, both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list, and a close reading level (730L vs 590L). Amazon → books like this →
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings1070L
Both on the AP English Literature & Composition list (+1 more shared list), same genre (Memoir), and overlapping grades (10–12). Amazon → books like this →
The Hunger Games810L
Shares themes of survival, both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list, and a close reading level (810L vs 590L). Amazon → books like this →
Life of Pi830L
Shares themes of survival, both on the AP English Literature & Composition list, and a close reading level (830L vs 590L). Amazon → books like this →
The Kite Runner840L
Shares themes of father-son relationships, both on the AP English Literature & Composition list (+1 more shared list), and a close reading level (840L vs 590L). Amazon → books like this →
Black Boy950L
Both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list, same genre (Memoir), and overlapping grades (9–12). Amazon → books like this →
The Call of the Wild1120L
Shares themes of survival, both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list, and overlapping grades (6–10). Amazon → books like this →

Books like Night 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 a close reading level (590L vs 590L).
  • Corduroy by Don Freeman · 600L — Both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list, a close reading level (600L vs 590L), and the same era (1960s).
  • Flat Stanley by Jeff Brown · 540L — Both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list, a close reading level (540L vs 590L), and the same era (1960s).
  • Ivy and Bean by Annie Barrows · 580L — Both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list and a close reading level (580L vs 590L).
  • Last Stop on Market Street by Matt de la Peña · 610L — Both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list and a close reading level (610L vs 590L).

Books like Night for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

  • I Survived the Sinking of the Titanic, 1912 by Lauren Tarshis · 590L — Shares themes of survival and a close reading level (590L vs 590L).
  • Number the Stars by Lois Lowry · 670L — Shares themes of Holocaust, both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list, and a close reading level (670L vs 590L).
  • Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell · 1000L — Shares themes of survival and both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list.
  • Corduroy by Don Freeman · 600L — Both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list, a close reading level (600L vs 590L), and the same era (1960s).
  • Flat Stanley by Jeff Brown · 540L — Both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list, a close reading level (540L vs 590L), and the same era (1960s).

Books like Night for middle school (grades 6–8)

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

  • Number the Stars by Lois Lowry · 670L — Shares themes of Holocaust, both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list, and a close reading level (670L vs 590L).
  • Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell · 1000L — Shares themes of survival and both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list.
  • A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park · 720L — Shares themes of survival and a close reading level (720L vs 590L).
  • The Devil's Arithmetic by Jane Yolen · 730L — Shares themes of Holocaust and a close reading level (730L vs 590L).
  • The Wild Robot by Peter Brown · 740L — Shares themes of survival and a close reading level (740L vs 590L).

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

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

  • Fences by August Wilson · grades 9–12 — Shares themes of father-son relationships, both on the AP English Literature & Composition list, and overlapping grades (9–12).
  • The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas · 590L — Both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list and a close reading level (590L vs 590L).
  • The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie · 600L — Both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list and a close reading level (600L vs 590L).
  • Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck · 630L — Both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list and a close reading level (630L vs 590L).
  • Refugee by Alan Gratz · 800L — Shares themes of survival and a close reading level (800L vs 590L).

Common questions

What books are similar to Night?
The 10 closest matches to Night by Elie Wiesel on ReadingList include Salt to the Sea, The Diary of a Young Girl, Maus: A Survivor's Tale, The Book Thief, and I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. Each is scored on shared themes (Holocaust, faith and doubt, and father-son relationships), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 9–12), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.
Are books like Night reading-level appropriate?
Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 9–12), 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 2026-08-11. Matches are computed from each book’s cited attributes — see the methodology.

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