What books are similar to The Graveyard Book?

The 10 closest matches to The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman on ReadingList include Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, The Giver, The Crossover, The Tale of Despereaux, and Tuck Everlasting. Each is scored on shared themes (found family, the supernatural and the living, and coming of age), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 5–8), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.

Are books like The Graveyard Book reading-level appropriate?

Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 5–8), 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 Graveyard Book

If you liked The Graveyard Book, read Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, The Giver, or The Crossover — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Looking for books like The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (Middle Grade Fantasy · 820L · grades 5–8)? It’s most often read for its themes of found family, the supernatural and the living, and coming of age. 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 5–8 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

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Why each is a match

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Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone880L: Shares themes of identity, both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fantasy). Amazon →
The Giver760L: Shares themes of coming of age, both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+2 more shared lists), and a close reading level (760L vs 820L). Amazon →
The Crossover750L: Shares themes of identity, both on the Kentucky Bluegrass Award (KBA) list (+2 more shared lists), and a close reading level (750L vs 820L). Amazon →
The Tale of Despereaux670L: Both on the Kentucky Bluegrass Award (KBA) list (+2 more shared lists), same genre (Middle Grade Fantasy), and a close reading level (670L vs 820L). Amazon →
Tuck Everlasting770L: Shares themes of coming of age, both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fantasy). Amazon →
The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book 1)740L: Shares themes of found family, both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fantasy). Amazon →
The Poet X800L: Shares themes of coming of age and identity and a close reading level (800L vs 820L). Amazon →
The Witch of Blackbird Pond850L: Shares themes of coming of age, both on the Newbery Medal list (+1 more shared list), and a close reading level (850L vs 820L). Amazon →
Walk Two Moons770L: Shares themes of identity, both on the Newbery Medal list (+1 more shared list), and a close reading level (770L vs 820L). Amazon →
The Westing Game750L: Shares themes of identity, both on the Newbery Medal list (+1 more shared list), and a close reading level (750L vs 820L). Amazon →

Books like The Graveyard Book for younger readers (K–2)

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

The Mouse and the Motorcycle by Beverly Cleary · 860L — Shares themes of coming of age, both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+1 more shared list), and a close reading level (860L vs 820L).
Dog Man by Dav Pilkey · 390L — Shares themes of identity, both on the Kentucky Bluegrass Award (KBA) list, and overlapping grades (2–5).
Ramona the Pest by Beverly Cleary · 750L — Both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list and a close reading level (750L vs 820L).
Last Stop on Market Street by Matt de la Peña · 610L — Both on the Newbery Medal list (+1 more shared list) and a close reading level (610L vs 820L).
Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume · 470L — Both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+1 more shared list) and overlapping grades (2–5).

Books like The Graveyard Book for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

The Mouse and the Motorcycle by Beverly Cleary · 860L — Shares themes of coming of age, both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+1 more shared list), and a close reading level (860L vs 820L).
Ghost by Jason Reynolds · 730L — Shares themes of identity, both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+1 more shared list), and a close reading level (730L vs 820L).
Wonder by R.J. Palacio · 790L — Both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+2 more shared lists) and a close reading level (790L vs 820L).
Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls · 700L — Shares themes of coming of age, both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+1 more shared list), and a close reading level (700L vs 820L).
Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis · 950L — Shares themes of identity, both on the Newbery Medal list (+1 more shared list), and a close reading level (950L vs 820L).

Books like The Graveyard Book for middle school (grades 6–8)

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

Ghost by Jason Reynolds · 730L — Shares themes of identity, both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+1 more shared list), and a close reading level (730L vs 820L).
Wonder by R.J. Palacio · 790L — Both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+2 more shared lists) and a close reading level (790L vs 820L).
Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls · 700L — Shares themes of coming of age, both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+1 more shared list), and a close reading level (700L vs 820L).
Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis · 950L — Shares themes of identity, both on the Newbery Medal list (+1 more shared list), and a close reading level (950L vs 820L).
American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang · 530L — Shares themes of coming of age and identity and overlapping grades (7–12).

Books like The Graveyard Book for high school & teens (grades 9–12)

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

American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang · 530L — Shares themes of coming of age and identity and overlapping grades (7–12).
Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood by Marjane Satrapi · grades 9–12 — Shares themes of coming of age and identity.
Life of Pi by Yann Martel · 830L — Shares themes of identity and a close reading level (830L vs 820L).
The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd · 840L — Shares themes of coming of age and a close reading level (840L vs 820L).
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger · 790L — Shares themes of identity, both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list, and a close reading level (790L vs 820L).

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

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