What books are similar to Onyx & Beyond?

The 10 closest matches to Onyx & Beyond by Amber McBride on ReadingList include The One and Only Ruby, Countdown to Yesterday, Old Yeller, Ramona the Pest, and Rascal. Each is scored on shared themes (family, memory, and love), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 3–6), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.

Are books like Onyx & Beyond reading-level appropriate?

Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 3–6), 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 Onyx & Beyond

If you liked Onyx & Beyond, read The One and Only Ruby, Countdown to Yesterday, or Old Yeller — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Looking for books like Onyx & Beyond by Amber McBride (Middle Grade Fiction · grades 3–6)? It’s most often read for its themes of family, memory, and love. 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 3–6 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

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Why each is a match

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The One and Only Rubygrades 2–5: Shares themes of family and memory, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and overlapping grades (2–5). Amazon → books like this →
Countdown to Yesterdaygrades 3–6: Shares themes of family, both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Old Yellergrades 5–8: Shares themes of family, both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Ramona the Pest750L: Shares themes of family, both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Rascalgrades 5–8: Shares themes of family, both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Summer of the Monkeysgrades 4–7: Shares themes of family, both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing470L: Shares themes of family, both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Between Two Brothersgrades 4–8: Shares themes of family, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–8). Amazon → books like this →
Boy 2.0grades 4–8: Shares themes of family, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–8). Amazon → books like this →
Jawbreakergrades 3–7: Shares themes of family, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and overlapping grades (3–7). Amazon → books like this →

Books like Onyx & Beyond for younger readers (K–2)

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

Picture Purrfect (Bodega Cats #1) by Hilda Eunice Burgos · grades 2–5 — Shares themes of family, both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list, and overlapping grades (2–5).
Dadaji's Paintbrush by Rashmi Sirdeshpande · grades K–3 — Shares themes of family and overlapping grades (K–3).
How Dinosaurs Went Extinct: A Safety Guide by Ame Dyckman · grades K–2 — Shares themes of family.
Night in the City by Julie Downing · grades K–2 — Shares themes of family.
The Yellow Bus by Loren Long · grades K–3 — Shares themes of memory and overlapping grades (K–3).

Books like Onyx & Beyond for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

Operation Final Notice by Matthew Landis · grades 4–8 — Shares themes of family, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–8).
Puzzleheart by Jenn Reese · grades 4–8 — Shares themes of family, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–8).
Rewind by Lisa Graff · grades 4–8 — Shares themes of family, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–8).
Roll for Initiative by Jaime Formato · grades 4–8 — Shares themes of family, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–8).
The Firefly Summer by Morgan Matson · grades 3–7 — Shares themes of family, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and overlapping grades (3–7).

Books like Onyx & Beyond for middle school (grades 6–8)

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

Never Thought I'd End Up Here by Ann Liang · grades 7–12 — Shares themes of family and love.
Operation Final Notice by Matthew Landis · grades 4–8 — Shares themes of family, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–8).
Puzzleheart by Jenn Reese · grades 4–8 — Shares themes of family, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–8).
Rewind by Lisa Graff · grades 4–8 — Shares themes of family, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–8).
Roll for Initiative by Jaime Formato · grades 4–8 — Shares themes of family, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–8).

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

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

Never Thought I'd End Up Here by Ann Liang · grades 7–12 — Shares themes of family and love.
The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams · grades 11–12 — Shares themes of family and memory.
Refugee by Alan Gratz · 800L — Shares themes of family, both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list, and overlapping grades (5–9).
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares · grades 7–10 — Shares themes of family and both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list.
A Fate So Cold by Amanda Foody · grades 7–12 — Shares themes of love.

Common questions

What books are similar to Onyx & Beyond?: The 10 closest matches to Onyx & Beyond by Amber McBride on ReadingList include The One and Only Ruby, Countdown to Yesterday, Old Yeller, Ramona the Pest, and Rascal. Each is scored on shared themes (family, memory, and love), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 3–6), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.
Are books like Onyx & Beyond reading-level appropriate?: Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 3–6), 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.

Book data last updated 2026-09-05. Matches are computed from each book’s cited attributes — see the methodology.

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