Books like The Doom Stone

If you liked The Doom Stone, read Cryptid Hunters, Loch, or The Ghost of Graylock — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Looking for books like The Doom Stone by Paul Zindel (Horror · grades 6–9)? It’s most often read for its themes of survival, science, and fear. 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 6–9 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

10 books similar to The Doom Stone

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Why each is a match

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Cryptid Huntersgrades 5–8
Shares themes of survival, both on the Nevada Young Readers' Award list (+1 more shared list), and overlapping grades (5–8). Amazon → books like this →
Lochgrades 3–8
Is by Paul Zindel, the same author, both on the Nevada Young Readers' Award list, and overlapping grades (3–8). Amazon → books like this →
The Ghost of Graylockgrades 5–8
Shares themes of fear, same genre (Horror), and overlapping grades (5–8). Amazon → books like this →
It Came from the Treesgrades 3–6
Shares themes of fear, same genre (Horror), and overlapping grades (3–6). Amazon → books like this →
Mountain of Fire: The Eruption and Survivors of Mount St. Helensgrades 4–8
Shares themes of survival and science and overlapping grades (4–8). Amazon → books like this →
Refugee800L
Shares themes of survival, both on the Young Hoosier Book Award list, and overlapping grades (5–9). Amazon → books like this →
Tales from Cabin 23: The Boo Hag Flexgrades 3–6
Shares themes of fear, same genre (Horror), and overlapping grades (3–6). Amazon → books like this →
The Cursed Moongrades 3–6
Shares themes of fear, same genre (Horror), and overlapping grades (3–6). Amazon → books like this →
Escaping the Giant Wavegrades 3–6
Both on the Nevada Young Readers' Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (3–6), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
Hatchet1020L
Shares themes of survival, both on the Young Hoosier Book Award list, and overlapping grades (5–8). Amazon → books like this →

Books like The Doom Stone for younger readers (K–2)

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

Books like The Doom Stone for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

  • My Teacher Is an Alien by Bruce Coville · grades 3–6 — Shares themes of science, both on the Nevada Young Readers' Award list, and overlapping grades (3–6).
  • Out of My Mind by Sharon M. Draper · 700L — Both on the Nevada Young Readers' Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (4–7), and the same era (2010s).
  • Red Midnight by Ben Mikaelsen · grades 3–8 — Shares themes of survival, both on the Nevada Young Readers' Award list, and overlapping grades (3–8).
  • Smile by Raina Telgemeier · 410L — Both on the Nevada Young Readers' Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (4–8), and the same era (2010s).
  • The Ghost's Grave by Peg Kehret · grades 3–8 — Both on the Nevada Young Readers' Award list, same genre (Horror), and overlapping grades (3–8).

Books like The Doom Stone for middle school (grades 6–8)

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

  • My Teacher Is an Alien by Bruce Coville · grades 3–6 — Shares themes of science, both on the Nevada Young Readers' Award list, and overlapping grades (3–6).
  • Out of My Mind by Sharon M. Draper · 700L — Both on the Nevada Young Readers' Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (4–7), and the same era (2010s).
  • Red Midnight by Ben Mikaelsen · grades 3–8 — Shares themes of survival, both on the Nevada Young Readers' Award list, and overlapping grades (3–8).
  • Smile by Raina Telgemeier · 410L — Both on the Nevada Young Readers' Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (4–8), and the same era (2010s).
  • The Ghost's Grave by Peg Kehret · grades 3–8 — Both on the Nevada Young Readers' Award list, same genre (Horror), and overlapping grades (3–8).

Books like The Doom Stone for high school & teens (grades 9–12)

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

  • The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins · 810L — Shares themes of survival, both on the Young Hoosier Book Award list, and overlapping grades (6–9).
  • Unwind by Neal Shusterman · grades 8–12 — Shares themes of survival, both on the Nevada Young Readers' Award list, and overlapping grades (8–12).
  • Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys · 560L — Shares themes of survival and overlapping grades (8–12).
  • The Maze Runner by James Dashner · grades 7–12 — Shares themes of survival and overlapping grades (7–12).
  • How to Survive Your Murder by Danielle Valentine · grades 9–12 — Shares themes of survival and overlapping grades (9–12).

Common questions

What books are similar to The Doom Stone?
The 10 closest matches to The Doom Stone by Paul Zindel on ReadingList include Cryptid Hunters, Loch, The Ghost of Graylock, It Came from the Trees, and Mountain of Fire: The Eruption and Survivors of Mount St. Helens. Each is scored on shared themes (survival, science, and fear), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 6–9), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.
Are books like The Doom Stone reading-level appropriate?
Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 6–9), 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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