What books are similar to The Adventures of Captain Underpants?

The 10 closest matches to The Adventures of Captain Underpants by Dav Pilkey on ReadingList include Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Ramona Quimby, Age 8, The 13-Story Treehouse, J vs. K, and The Superteacher Project. Each is scored on shared themes (friendship, humor, and imagination), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 2–5), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.

Are books like The Adventures of Captain Underpants reading-level appropriate?

Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 2–5), 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 The Adventures of Captain Underpants

If you liked The Adventures of Captain Underpants, read Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Ramona Quimby, Age 8, or The 13-Story Treehouse — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Looking for books like The Adventures of Captain Underpants by Dav Pilkey (Middle Grade Fiction · 720L · grades 2–5)? It’s most often read for its themes of friendship, humor, and imagination. 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 2–5 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

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Why each is a match

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Diary of a Wimpy Kid950L: Shares themes of friendship, humor, and school, both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+1 more shared list), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon →
Ramona Quimby, Age 8860L: Shares themes of humor and school, both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon →
The 13-Story Treehouse560L: Shares themes of friendship, humor, and imagination, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and a close reading level (560L vs 720L). Amazon →
J vs. Kgrades 3–5: Shares themes of friendship, humor, and school, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and overlapping grades (3–5). Amazon →
The Superteacher Projectgrades 3–6: Shares themes of friendship, humor, and school, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and overlapping grades (3–6). Amazon →
Wayside School Is Falling Downgrades 3–5: Shares themes of friendship, humor, and imagination and overlapping grades (3–5). Amazon →
The BFG720L: Shares themes of friendship and imagination, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and a close reading level (720L vs 720L). Amazon →
Holes660L: Shares themes of friendship, both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon →
Frindle830L: Shares themes of imagination and school, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and a close reading level (830L vs 720L). Amazon →
Out of My Mind700L: Shares themes of friendship, both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon →

Books like The Adventures of Captain Underpants for younger readers (K–2)

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

Ramona the Pest by Beverly Cleary · 750L — Shares themes of school, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and a close reading level (750L vs 720L).
If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by Laura Numeroff · 410L — Shares themes of humor and imagination, both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list, and overlapping grades (K–3).
Corduroy by Don Freeman · 600L — Shares themes of friendship and imagination and a close reading level (600L vs 720L).
Ivy and Bean by Annie Barrows · 580L — Shares themes of friendship and humor and a close reading level (580L vs 720L).
The Mouse and the Motorcycle by Beverly Cleary · 860L — Shares themes of friendship, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and a close reading level (860L vs 720L).

Books like The Adventures of Captain Underpants for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

Pax by Sara Pennypacker · 760L — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
Wonder by R.J. Palacio · 790L — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
Planet Omar: Accidental Trouble Magnet by Zanib Mian · 820L — Shares themes of friendship and school, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and a close reading level (820L vs 720L).
James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl · 870L — Shares themes of friendship and imagination, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and a close reading level (870L vs 720L).
Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli · 820L — Both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+1 more shared list), same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and a close reading level (820L vs 720L).

Books like The Adventures of Captain Underpants for middle school (grades 6–8)

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

Confessions of a Class Clown by Arianne Costner · grades 6–8 — Shares themes of friendship, humor, and school and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
Pax by Sara Pennypacker · 760L — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
Wonder by R.J. Palacio · 790L — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
Planet Omar: Accidental Trouble Magnet by Zanib Mian · 820L — Shares themes of friendship and school, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and a close reading level (820L vs 720L).
James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl · 870L — Shares themes of friendship and imagination, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and a close reading level (870L vs 720L).

Books like The Adventures of Captain Underpants for high school & teens (grades 9–12)

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

The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky · 720L — Shares themes of friendship and a close reading level (720L vs 720L).
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak · 730L — Shares themes of friendship and a close reading level (730L vs 720L).
The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton · 750L — Shares themes of friendship and a close reading level (750L vs 720L).
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck · 630L — Shares themes of friendship and a close reading level (630L vs 720L).
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini · 840L — Shares themes of friendship and a close reading level (840L vs 720L).

What to read after Captain Underpants

The Adventures of Captain Underpants is book 1 of 12 in Dav Pilkey’s Captain Underpants series. Not done with the series yet? Follow the Captain Underpants reading order first — then come back for the matches above.

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

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