Books like Uglies

If you liked Uglies, read Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging, Drama, or Midnighters #2: Touching Darkness — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Looking for books like Uglies by Scott Westerfeld (Graphic Novel · grades 9–12)? It’s most often read for its themes of teenage girls, science fiction, and personal beauty. 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 9–12 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

10 books similar to Uglies

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Why each is a match

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Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogginggrades 9–12
Shares themes of teenage girls, both on the Virginia Readers' Choice list, and overlapping grades (9–12). Amazon → books like this →
Dramagrades 5–9
Shares themes of friendship, same genre (Graphic Novel), and overlapping grades (5–9). Amazon → books like this →
Midnighters #2: Touching Darknessgrades 5–12
Is by Scott Westerfeld, the same author, overlapping grades (5–12), and the same era (2000s). Amazon → books like this →
Peepsgrades 5–12
Is by Scott Westerfeld, the same author, overlapping grades (5–12), and the same era (2000s). Amazon → books like this →
Four for the Roadgrades 9–12
Shares themes of friendship, both on the Virginia Readers' Choice list, and overlapping grades (9–12). Amazon → books like this →
Izzy, Willy-Nillygrades 9–12
Shares themes of friendship, both on the Virginia Readers' Choice list, and overlapping grades (9–12). Amazon → books like this →
Now Let Me Fly: A Portrait of Eugene Bullardgrades 9–12
Both on the Virginia Readers' Choice list, same genre (Graphic Novel), and overlapping grades (9–12). Amazon → books like this →
Say Goodnight, Graciegrades 9–12
Shares themes of friendship, both on the Virginia Readers' Choice list, and overlapping grades (9–12). Amazon → books like this →
The Outsiders750L
Shares themes of friendship, both on the Virginia Readers' Choice list, and overlapping grades (7–9). Amazon → books like this →
The Book Thief730L
Shares themes of friendship and overlapping grades (8–11). Amazon → books like this →

Books like Uglies for younger readers (K–2)

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

  • He Came With the Couch by David Slonim · grades K–3 — Shares themes of friendship and both on the Virginia Readers' Choice list.
  • Real Friends by Shannon Hale · grades 2–8 — Shares themes of friendship and same genre (Graphic Novel).
  • Buffalo Fluffalo by Bess Kalb · grades K–2 — Shares themes of friendship and both on the Virginia Readers' Choice list.
  • How This Book Got Red by Margaret Chiu Greanias · grades K–2 — Shares themes of friendship and both on the Virginia Readers' Choice list.
  • No Cats in the Library by Lauren Emmons · grades K–2 — Shares themes of friendship and both on the Virginia Readers' Choice list.

Books like Uglies for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

  • Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo · 610L — Shares themes of friendship and both on the Virginia Readers' Choice list.
  • Class Act by Jerry Craft · grades 4–8 — Shares themes of friendship and same genre (Graphic Novel).
  • Dog Man Unleashed by Dav Pilkey · grades 3–6 — Shares themes of friendship and same genre (Graphic Novel).
  • He Came With the Couch by David Slonim · grades K–3 — Shares themes of friendship and both on the Virginia Readers' Choice list.
  • My Robot Buddy by Alfred Slote · grades 4–6 — Shares themes of science fiction and friendship.

Books like Uglies for middle school (grades 6–8)

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

  • Class Act by Jerry Craft · grades 4–8 — Shares themes of friendship and same genre (Graphic Novel).
  • Dog Man Unleashed by Dav Pilkey · grades 3–6 — Shares themes of friendship and same genre (Graphic Novel).
  • My Robot Buddy by Alfred Slote · grades 4–6 — Shares themes of science fiction and friendship.
  • Powerless by Matthew Cody · grades 4–7 — Shares themes of friendship and both on the Virginia Readers' Choice list.
  • Real Friends by Shannon Hale · grades 2–8 — Shares themes of friendship and same genre (Graphic Novel).

Books like Uglies for high school & teens (grades 9–12)

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

  • The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini · 840L — Shares themes of friendship and overlapping grades (10–12).
  • The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares · grades 7–10 — Shares themes of friendship and overlapping grades (7–10).
  • Twilight by Stephenie Meyer · grades 9–12 — Same genre (Graphic Novel), overlapping grades (9–12), and the same era (2000s).
  • A Taste of Honey by Shelagh Delaney · grades 9–10 — Shares themes of teenage girls and overlapping grades (9–10).
  • Eragon by Christopher Paolini · grades 6–9 — Both on the Virginia Readers' Choice list, overlapping grades (6–9), and the same era (2000s).

Common questions

What books are similar to Uglies?
The 10 closest matches to Uglies by Scott Westerfeld on ReadingList include Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging, Drama, Midnighters #2: Touching Darkness, Peeps, and Four for the Road. Each is scored on shared themes (teenage girls, science fiction, and personal beauty), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 9–12), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.
Are books like Uglies reading-level appropriate?
Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 9–12), 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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