Books like A Dog Called Homeless

If you liked A Dog Called Homeless, read The War That Saved My Life, Wonderstruck, or As Brave As You — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared award lists and reading level.

Closest match: The War That Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

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Looking for books like A Dog Called Homeless by Sarah Lean? 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 3–6 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

10 books similar to A Dog Called Homeless

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Why each is a match

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The War That Saved My Life580L
Both on the California Young Reader Medal list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (4–7), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
Wonderstruckgrades 4–7
Both on the California Young Reader Medal list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (4–7), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
As Brave As Yougrades 4–7
Both on the Schneider Family Book Award list, overlapping grades (4–7), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
Becoming Naomi Leon (Scholastic Gold)grades 4–7
Both on the Schneider Family Book Award list, overlapping grades (4–7), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
Close to Famousgrades 4–7
Both on the Schneider Family Book Award list, overlapping grades (4–7), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
Fish in a Tree550L
Both on the Schneider Family Book Award list, overlapping grades (4–7), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
Handbook for Dragon Slayersgrades 4–7
Both on the Schneider Family Book Award list, overlapping grades (4–7), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
Macy McMillan and the Rainbow Goddessgrades 4–7
Both on the Schneider Family Book Award list, overlapping grades (4–7), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
Song for A Whalegrades 4–7
Both on the Schneider Family Book Award list, overlapping grades (4–7), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
Una niña llamada Rose / Rain Reigngrades 4–7
Both on the Schneider Family Book Award list, overlapping grades (4–7), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →

Books like A Dog Called Homeless for middle school (grades 6–8)

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

  • Cursed by Karol Ruth Silverstein · grades 7–12 — Both on the Schneider Family Book Award list and the same era (2010s).
  • Five Flavors of Dumb by Antony John · grades 8–12 — Both on the Schneider Family Book Award list and the same era (2010s).
  • Hurt Go Happy by Ginny Rorby · grades 7–10 — Both on the Schneider Family Book Award list and the same era (2010s).
  • Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein · grades 8–12 — Both on the Schneider Family Book Award list and the same era (2010s).
  • The Running Dream by Wendelin Van Draanen · grades 7–12 — Both on the Schneider Family Book Award list and the same era (2010s).

Books like A Dog Called Homeless for high school & teens (grades 9–12)

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

  • Anger Is a Gift by Mark Oshiro · grades 9–12 — Both on the Schneider Family Book Award list and the same era (2010s).
  • Cursed by Karol Ruth Silverstein · grades 7–12 — Both on the Schneider Family Book Award list and the same era (2010s).
  • Five Flavors of Dumb by Antony John · grades 8–12 — Both on the Schneider Family Book Award list and the same era (2010s).
  • Girls Like Us by Gail Giles · grades 9–12 — Both on the Schneider Family Book Award list and the same era (2010s).
  • Hurt Go Happy by Ginny Rorby · grades 7–10 — Both on the Schneider Family Book Award list and the same era (2010s).

Common questions

What books are similar to A Dog Called Homeless?
The 10 closest matches to A Dog Called Homeless by Sarah Lean on ReadingList include The War That Saved My Life, Wonderstruck, As Brave As You, Becoming Naomi Leon (Scholastic Gold), and Close to Famous. Each is scored on shared themes, shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 3–6), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.
Are books like A Dog Called Homeless reading-level appropriate?
Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 3–6), 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.

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

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