What books are similar to Wonder?

The 10 closest matches to Wonder by R.J. Palacio on ReadingList include The Wild Robot, Out of My Mind, Fish in a Tree, Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH, and Refugee. Each is scored on shared themes (facial difference, kindness, and bullying), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 3–7), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.

Are books like Wonder reading-level appropriate?

Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 3–7), 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 Wonder

If you liked Wonder, read The Wild Robot, Out of My Mind, or Fish in a Tree — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Looking for books like Wonder by R.J. Palacio (Middle Grade Fiction · 790L · grades 3–7)? It’s most often read for its themes of facial difference, kindness, and bullying. 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 3–7 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

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Why each is a match

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The Wild Robot740L: Shares themes of kindness and family, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award (Michigan Reading Association) list (+2 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon →
Out of My Mind700L: Shares themes of family and friendship, both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+12 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon →
Fish in a Tree550L: Shares themes of bullying and friendship, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award (Michigan Reading Association) list (+1 more shared list), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon →
Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH790L: Shares themes of family, both on the Mark Twain Readers Award list (+2 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon →
Refugee800L: Shares themes of family and empathy, both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+11 more shared lists), and a close reading level (800L vs 790L). Amazon →
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory810L: Shares themes of kindness and family, both on the North Dakota Flicker Tale Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon →
Maniac Magee820L: Shares themes of family, both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+12 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon →
Pax760L: Shares themes of friendship, both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+3 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon →
Planet Omar: Accidental Trouble Magnet820L: Shares themes of family and friendship, both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon →
Ramona the Pest750L: Shares themes of family, both on the Nēnē Award (Hawai'i) list (+2 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon →

Books like Wonder 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 friendship, both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+3 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume · 470L — Shares themes of family, both on the Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award list (+5 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
The Adventures of Captain Underpants by Dav Pilkey · 720L — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
The 13-Story Treehouse by Andy Griffiths · 560L — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
Dog Man by Dav Pilkey · 390L — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Kentucky Bluegrass Award (KBA) list (+2 more shared lists), and overlapping grades (2–5).

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

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

Restart by Gordon Korman · 730L — Shares themes of bullying, both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+8 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
The Mouse and the Motorcycle by Beverly Cleary · 860L — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+3 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney · 950L — Shares themes of family and friendship, both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+9 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
Not Nothing by Gayle Forman · grades 4–8 — Shares themes of friendship and empathy, both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+1 more shared list), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
Hoot by Carl Hiaasen · 760L — Shares themes of bullying and friendship, both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+2 more shared lists), and a close reading level (760L vs 790L).

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

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

Restart by Gordon Korman · 730L — Shares themes of bullying, both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+8 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney · 950L — Shares themes of family and friendship, both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+9 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
Not Nothing by Gayle Forman · grades 4–8 — Shares themes of friendship and empathy, both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+1 more shared list), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
Hoot by Carl Hiaasen · 760L — Shares themes of bullying and friendship, both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+2 more shared lists), and a close reading level (760L vs 790L).
Hello, Universe by Erin Entrada Kelly · 690L — Shares themes of bullying and friendship, both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).

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

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

Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds · 720L — Shares themes of family, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award (Michigan Reading Association) list (+1 more shared list), and a close reading level (720L vs 790L).
The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton · 750L — Shares themes of family and friendship, both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list, and a close reading level (750L vs 790L).
Drums, Girls & Dangerous Pie by Jordan Sonnenblick · grades 6–9 — Shares themes of family, both on the Grand Canyon Reader Award (Arizona) — formerly the Arizona Young Readers Award list (+1 more shared list), and overlapping grades (6–9).
Michael Vey: The Prisoner of Cell 25 by Richard Paul Evans · grades 6–9 — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Louisiana Young Readers' Choice Award (Louisiana Readers' Choice Awards), Grades 3-5 & Grades 6-8 divisions list (+2 more shared lists), and overlapping grades (6–9).
Shut Up, This Is Serious by Carolina Ixta · grades 9–12 — Shares themes of family and friendship and both on the California Young Reader Medal list.

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

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