What books are similar to The Secret Funeral of Slim Jim the Snake?

The 10 closest matches to The Secret Funeral of Slim Jim the Snake by Elvira Woodruff on ReadingList include Eight Keys, Attaboy, Sam!, Flying Solo, Ramona's World, and Shiloh. Each is scored on shared themes (undertakers and undertaking, orphans, and truck drivers), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 4–6), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.

Are books like The Secret Funeral of Slim Jim the Snake reading-level appropriate?

Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 4–6), 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 Secret Funeral of Slim Jim the Snake

If you liked The Secret Funeral of Slim Jim the Snake, read Eight Keys, Attaboy, Sam!, or Flying Solo — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Looking for books like The Secret Funeral of Slim Jim the Snake by Elvira Woodruff (Realistic Fiction · grades 4–6)? It’s most often read for its themes of undertakers and undertaking, orphans, and truck drivers. 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 4–6 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

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Why each is a match

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Eight Keysgrades 4–6: Shares themes of orphans, both on the Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon →
Attaboy, Sam!grades 4–6: Both on the Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–6). Amazon →
Flying Sologrades 4–6: Both on the Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–6). Amazon →
Ramona's Worldgrades 4–6: Both on the Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–6). Amazon →
Shiloh890L: Both on the Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (3–6). Amazon →
The Ghost Inside the Monitorgrades 4–6: Both on the Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–6). Amazon →
All About Samgrades 4–6: Both on the Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–6). Amazon →
All the Money in the Worldgrades 4–6: Both on the Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–6). Amazon →
Big Bengrades 4–6: Both on the Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–6). Amazon →
Do Bananas Chew Gum?grades 4–6: Both on the Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–6). Amazon →

Books like The Secret Funeral of Slim Jim the Snake for younger readers (K–2)

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

Lawn Boy by Gary Paulsen · grades 2–8 — Same genre (Realistic Fiction), overlapping grades (2–8), and the same era (1990s).
Sharing Susan by Eve Bunting · grades 2–8 — Same genre (Realistic Fiction), overlapping grades (2–8), and the same era (1990s).
Tangerine by Edward Bloor · grades 2–8 — Same genre (Realistic Fiction), overlapping grades (2–8), and the same era (1990s).
When Zachary Beaver Came to Town by Kimberly Willis Holt · grades 2–8 — Same genre (Realistic Fiction), overlapping grades (2–8), and the same era (1990s).
¡Vamos! Let's Go Eat by Raúl the Third III · grades 2–8 — Same genre (Realistic Fiction) and overlapping grades (2–8).

Books like The Secret Funeral of Slim Jim the Snake for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

Loser by Jerry Spinelli · grades 4–6 — Both on the Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–6).
No Talking by Andrew Clements · grades 3–8 — Both on the Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (3–8).
Shoeshine Girl by Clyde Robert Bulla · grades 4–6 — Both on the Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–6).
Striped Ice Cream by Joan M. Lexau · grades 4–6 — Both on the Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–6).
The Computer Nut by Betsy Cromer Byars · grades 4–6 — Both on the Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–6).

Books like The Secret Funeral of Slim Jim the Snake for middle school (grades 6–8)

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

Loser by Jerry Spinelli · grades 4–6 — Both on the Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–6).
No Talking by Andrew Clements · grades 3–8 — Both on the Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (3–8).
Shoeshine Girl by Clyde Robert Bulla · grades 4–6 — Both on the Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–6).
Striped Ice Cream by Joan M. Lexau · grades 4–6 — Both on the Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–6).
The Computer Nut by Betsy Cromer Byars · grades 4–6 — Both on the Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–6).

Books like The Secret Funeral of Slim Jim the Snake for high school & teens (grades 9–12)

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

Drums, Girls & Dangerous Pie by Jordan Sonnenblick · grades 6–9 — Same genre (Realistic Fiction) and overlapping grades (6–9).
Forged by Fire by Sharon M. Draper · grades 7–10 — Same genre (Realistic Fiction).
Orbiting Jupiter by Gary D. Schmidt · grades 7–10 — Same genre (Realistic Fiction).
Posted by John David Anderson · grades 6–9 — Same genre (Realistic Fiction) and overlapping grades (6–9).
Romiette and Julio by Sharon M. Draper · grades 7–10 — Same genre (Realistic Fiction).

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

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