What books are similar to The Great Stink?

The 10 closest matches to The Great Stink by Colleen Paeff on ReadingList include Curlfriends: New in Town (a Graphic Novel), Ways to Make Sunshine, A Green Place to be, Clementine, and Noah Webster and His Words. Each is scored on shared themes, shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades K–5), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.

Are books like The Great Stink reading-level appropriate?

Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades K–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 Great Stink

If you liked The Great Stink, read Curlfriends: New in Town (a Graphic Novel), Ways to Make Sunshine, or A Green Place to be — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared award lists and reading level.

Looking for books like The Great Stink by Colleen Paeff (Children's · grades K–5)? 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 K–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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Curlfriends: New in Town (a Graphic Novel)grades 3–8: Both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list (+1 more shared list), same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (3–8). Amazon → books like this →
Ways to Make Sunshinegrades 3–7: Both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list (+1 more shared list), same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (3–7). Amazon → books like this →
A Green Place to begrades K–5: Both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list (+1 more shared list), same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (K–5). Amazon → books like this →
Clementinegrades 3–8: Both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list (+1 more shared list), same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (3–8). Amazon → books like this →
Noah Webster and His Wordsgrades 4–10: Both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list (+1 more shared list), same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (4–10). Amazon → books like this →
Otis and Will Discover the Deepgrades K–5: Both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list (+1 more shared list), same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (K–5). Amazon → books like this →
Stella Díaz Has Something to Saygrades 3–8: Both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list (+1 more shared list), same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (3–8). Amazon → books like this →
All Because You Matter (An All Because You Matter Book)grades K–5: Both on the Golden Kite Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (K–5). Amazon → books like this →
Chancegrades 3–8: Both on the Golden Kite Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (3–8). Amazon → books like this →
Chinese Menugrades 3–10: Both on the Garden State Children's Book Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (3–10). Amazon → books like this →

Books like The Great Stink for younger readers (K–2)

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

Eyes That Kiss in the Corners by Joanna Ho · grades K–5 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (K–5).
Fly by Brittany J. Thurman · grades K–5 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (K–5).
King of Ragtime by Stephen Costanza · grades K–5 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (K–5).
Kumo by Kyo Maclear · grades K–5 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (K–5).
Little Red Riding Hood (40th Anniversary Edition) by Trina Schart Hyman · grades K–5 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (K–5).

Books like The Great Stink for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

Eyes That Kiss in the Corners by Joanna Ho · grades K–5 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (K–5).
Fly by Brittany J. Thurman · grades K–5 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (K–5).
Freddie vs. the Family Curse by Tracy Badua · grades 3–8 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (3–8).
King of Ragtime by Stephen Costanza · grades K–5 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (K–5).
Kumo by Kyo Maclear · grades K–5 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (K–5).

Books like The Great Stink for middle school (grades 6–8)

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

A Face for Picasso by Ariel Henley · grades 6–12 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list, same genre (Children's), and the same era (2020s).
Absurd Words by Tara Lazar · grades 6–12 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list, same genre (Children's), and the same era (2020s).
All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys' Soccer Team by Christina Soontornvat · grades 6–12 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list, same genre (Children's), and the same era (2020s).
Freddie vs. the Family Curse by Tracy Badua · grades 3–8 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (3–8).
Lupe Wong Won't Dance by Donna Barba Higuera · grades 3–8 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list, same genre (Children's), and overlapping grades (3–8).

Books like The Great Stink for high school & teens (grades 9–12)

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

A Face for Picasso by Ariel Henley · grades 6–12 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list, same genre (Children's), and the same era (2020s).
Absurd Words by Tara Lazar · grades 6–12 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list, same genre (Children's), and the same era (2020s).
All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys' Soccer Team by Christina Soontornvat · grades 6–12 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list, same genre (Children's), and the same era (2020s).
Beneath the Wide Silk Sky by Emily Inouye Huey · grades 9–12 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list, same genre (Children's), and the same era (2020s).
The Blood Years by Elana K. Arnold · grades 9–12 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list, same genre (Children's), and the same era (2020s).

Common questions

What books are similar to The Great Stink?: The 10 closest matches to The Great Stink by Colleen Paeff on ReadingList include Curlfriends: New in Town (a Graphic Novel), Ways to Make Sunshine, A Green Place to be, Clementine, and Noah Webster and His Words. Each is scored on shared themes, shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades K–5), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.
Are books like The Great Stink reading-level appropriate?: Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades K–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.

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

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