What books are similar to The First Cat in Space Ate Pizza?

The 10 closest matches to The First Cat in Space Ate Pizza by Mac Barnett on ReadingList include Big Nate: In a Class by Himself, Dog Man, A Royal Conundrum, Chronicles of a Lizard Nobody, and A Lot to Like!. Each is scored on shared themes (space, humor, and adventure), 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 First Cat in Space Ate Pizza 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 First Cat in Space Ate Pizza

If you liked The First Cat in Space Ate Pizza, read Big Nate: In a Class by Himself, Dog Man, or A Royal Conundrum — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Looking for books like The First Cat in Space Ate Pizza by Mac Barnett (Middle Grade Graphic Novel · grades 2–5)? It’s most often read for its themes of space, humor, and adventure. 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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Big Nate: In a Class by Himself500L: Shares themes of humor and friendship, both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Graphic Novel). Amazon →
Dog Man390L: Shares themes of humor and friendship, both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Graphic Novel). Amazon →
A Royal Conundrumgrades 3–6: Shares themes of humor, adventure, and friendship and overlapping grades (3–6). Amazon →
Chronicles of a Lizard Nobodygrades 4–8: Shares themes of humor and friendship, same genre (Middle Grade Graphic Novel), and overlapping grades (4–8). Amazon →
A Lot to Like!grades 2–5: Shares themes of humor and friendship, both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list, and overlapping grades (2–5). Amazon →
Fox Has a Problemgrades 2–5: Shares themes of humor and friendship, both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list, and overlapping grades (2–5). Amazon →
Geronimo Stilton: Lost Treasure of the Emerald Eye530L: Shares themes of humor, adventure, and friendship and overlapping grades (2–5). Amazon →
Smile410L: Shares themes of humor and friendship, same genre (Middle Grade Graphic Novel), and overlapping grades (4–8). Amazon →
Swim Teamgrades 3–7: Shares themes of friendship, both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Graphic Novel). Amazon →
Diary of a Wimpy Kid950L: Shares themes of humor and friendship, both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list, and overlapping grades (3–7). Amazon →

Books like The First Cat in Space Ate Pizza for younger readers (K–2)

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

Buffalo Fluffalo by Bess Kalb · grades K–2 — Shares themes of humor and friendship and overlapping grades (K–2).
Frog and Toad Together by Arnold Lobel · 330L — Shares themes of humor and friendship and overlapping grades (1–2).
Ivy and Bean by Annie Barrows · 580L — Shares themes of humor and friendship and overlapping grades (2–4).
Mercy Watson to the Rescue by Kate DiCamillo · 450L — Shares themes of humor and friendship and overlapping grades (K–3).
The 13-Story Treehouse by Andy Griffiths · 560L — Shares themes of humor and friendship and overlapping grades (2–5).

Books like The First Cat in Space Ate Pizza for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

Max and the Midknights by Lincoln Peirce · grades 3–6 — Shares themes of humor and adventure, both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list, and overlapping grades (3–6).
New Kid by Jerry Craft · grades 4–8 — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Graphic Novel).
Roller Girl by Victoria Jamieson · 440L — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Graphic Novel).
The Season of Styx Malone by Kekla Magoon · 510L — Shares themes of adventure and friendship, both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list, and overlapping grades (3–7).
Curveball by Pablo Cartaya · grades 3–5 — Shares themes of friendship, same genre (Middle Grade Graphic Novel), and overlapping grades (3–5).

Books like The First Cat in Space Ate Pizza for middle school (grades 6–8)

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

Simon Sort of Says by Erin Bow · grades 6–8 — Shares themes of humor and friendship and both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list.
Max and the Midknights by Lincoln Peirce · grades 3–6 — Shares themes of humor and adventure, both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list, and overlapping grades (3–6).
New Kid by Jerry Craft · grades 4–8 — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Graphic Novel).
Roller Girl by Victoria Jamieson · 440L — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Graphic Novel).
The Season of Styx Malone by Kekla Magoon · 510L — Shares themes of adventure and friendship, both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list, and overlapping grades (3–7).

Books like The First Cat in Space Ate Pizza for high school & teens (grades 9–12)

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

Four for the Road by K.J. Reilly · grades 9–12 — Shares themes of friendship.
Shut Up, This Is Serious by Carolina Ixta · grades 9–12 — Shares themes of friendship.
The Agathas by Kathleen Glasgow · grades 9–12 — Shares themes of friendship.
Under the Surface by Diana Urban · grades 7–12 — Shares themes of friendship.
Drama by Raina Telgemeier · grades 5–9 — Shares themes of friendship and overlapping grades (5–9).

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

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