What books are similar to To Catch a Thief?

The 10 closest matches to To Catch a Thief by Martha Brockenbrough on ReadingList include A Rover's Story, A Work in Progress, All Because You Matter (An All Because You Matter Book), Big, and Chance. Each is scored on shared themes, shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 4–5), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.

Are books like To Catch a Thief reading-level appropriate?

Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 4–5), 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 To Catch a Thief

If you liked To Catch a Thief, read A Rover's Story, A Work in Progress, or All Because You Matter (An All Because You Matter Book) — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared award lists and reading level.

Looking for books like To Catch a Thief by Martha Brockenbrough? 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 4–5 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

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Why each is a match

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A Rover's Storygrades 4–5: Both on the Georgia Children's Book Award list, overlapping grades (4–5), and the same era (2020s). Amazon → books like this →
A Work in Progressgrades 4–8: Both on the Georgia Children's Book Award list, overlapping grades (4–8), and the same era (2020s). Amazon → books like this →
All Because You Matter (An All Because You Matter Book)grades K–5: Both on the Golden Kite Award list, overlapping grades (K–5), and the same era (2020s). Amazon → books like this →
Biggrades K–5: Both on the Golden Kite Award list, overlapping grades (K–5), and the same era (2020s). Amazon → books like this →
Chancegrades 3–8: Both on the Golden Kite Award list, overlapping grades (3–8), and the same era (2020s). Amazon → books like this →
Curlfriends: New in Town (a Graphic Novel)grades 3–8: Both on the Golden Kite Award list, overlapping grades (3–8), and the same era (2020s). Amazon → books like this →
Eyes That Kiss in the Cornersgrades K–5: Both on the Golden Kite Award list, overlapping grades (K–5), and the same era (2020s). Amazon → books like this →
Flygrades K–5: Both on the Golden Kite Award list, overlapping grades (K–5), and the same era (2020s). Amazon → books like this →
Freddie vs. the Family Cursegrades 3–8: Both on the Golden Kite Award list, overlapping grades (3–8), and the same era (2020s). Amazon → books like this →
Frizzygrades 4–5: Both on the Georgia Children's Book Award list, overlapping grades (4–5), and the same era (2020s). Amazon → books like this →

Books like To Catch a Thief for younger readers (K–2)

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

King of Ragtime by Stephen Costanza · grades K–5 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list, overlapping grades (K–5), and the same era (2020s).
Kumo by Kyo Maclear · grades K–5 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list, overlapping grades (K–5), and the same era (2020s).
Little Red Riding Hood (40th Anniversary Edition) by Trina Schart Hyman · grades K–5 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list, overlapping grades (K–5), and the same era (2020s).
Our Planet! There's No Place Like Earth by Stacy McAnulty · grades K–5 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list, overlapping grades (K–5), and the same era (2020s).
Over and Under the Rainforest by Kate Messner · grades K–5 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list, overlapping grades (K–5), and the same era (2020s).

Books like To Catch a Thief for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

Hoops by Matt Tavares · grades 3–5 — Both on the Georgia Children's Book Award list, overlapping grades (3–5), and the same era (2020s).
King of Ragtime by Stephen Costanza · grades K–5 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list, overlapping grades (K–5), and the same era (2020s).
Kumo by Kyo Maclear · grades K–5 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list, overlapping grades (K–5), and the same era (2020s).
Little Monarchs by Jonathan Case · grades 4–5 — Both on the Georgia Children's Book Award list, overlapping grades (4–5), and the same era (2020s).
Little Red Riding Hood (40th Anniversary Edition) by Trina Schart Hyman · grades K–5 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list, overlapping grades (K–5), and the same era (2020s).

Books like To Catch a Thief 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 and the same era (2020s).
Absurd Words by Tara Lazar · grades 6–12 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list 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 and the same era (2020s).
Farther Than the Moon by Lindsay Lackey · grades 6–8 — Both on the Georgia Children's Book Award list and the same era (2020s).
Good Different by Meg Eden Kuyatt · grades 6–9 — Both on the Georgia Children's Book Award list and the same era (2020s).

Books like To Catch a Thief 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 and the same era (2020s).
Absurd Words by Tara Lazar · grades 6–12 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list 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 and the same era (2020s).
Beneath the Wide Silk Sky by Emily Inouye Huey · grades 9–12 — Both on the Golden Kite Award list and the same era (2020s).
Good Different by Meg Eden Kuyatt · grades 6–9 — Both on the Georgia Children's Book Award list and the same era (2020s).

Common questions

What books are similar to To Catch a Thief?: The 10 closest matches to To Catch a Thief by Martha Brockenbrough on ReadingList include A Rover's Story, A Work in Progress, All Because You Matter (An All Because You Matter Book), Big, and Chance. Each is scored on shared themes, shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 4–5), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.
Are books like To Catch a Thief reading-level appropriate?: Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 4–5), 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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