What books are similar to Best Friends?

The 10 closest matches to Best Friends by Shannon Hale on ReadingList include Real Friends, Dangerous, All the Impossible Things, Front Desk, and Ghost Boys. Each is scored on shared themes, shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 4–8), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.

Are books like Best Friends reading-level appropriate?

Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 4–8), 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 Best Friends

If you liked Best Friends, read Real Friends, Dangerous, or All the Impossible Things — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared award lists and reading level.

Closest match: Real Friends by Shannon Hale

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Looking for books like Best Friends by Shannon Hale (Realistic Fiction · grades 4–8)? 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 4–8 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

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Why each is a match

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Real Friendsgrades 2–8: Is by Shannon Hale, the same author, overlapping grades (2–8), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
Dangerousgrades 6–8: Is by Shannon Hale, the same author and overlapping grades (6–8). Amazon → books like this →
All the Impossible Thingsgrades 6–8: Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (6–8). Amazon → books like this →
Front Desk640L: Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (3–7). Amazon → books like this →
Ghost Boys360L: Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–7). Amazon → books like this →
On the Day I Died: Stories from the Gravegrades 6–8: Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (6–8). Amazon → books like this →
The Fourteenth Goldfishgrades 4–6: Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–6). Amazon → books like this →
Ungiftedgrades 5–8: Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (5–8). Amazon → books like this →
Wild Wingsgrades 4–6: Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–6). Amazon → books like this →
101 Ways to Bug Your Parentsgrades 4–6: Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–6). Amazon → books like this →

Books like Best Friends for younger readers (K–2)

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

Cat Secrets by Jef Czekaj · grades K–3 — Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and the same era (2010s).
Chester by Mélanie Watt · grades K–3 — Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and the same era (2010s).
Memoirs of a Goldfish by Devin Scillian · grades K–3 — Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and the same era (2010s).
Zombies Don't Eat Veggies! by Jorge Lacera · grades K–2 — Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and the same era (2010s).

Books like Best Friends for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

Cat Secrets by Jef Czekaj · grades K–3 — Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and the same era (2010s).
Chester by Mélanie Watt · grades K–3 — Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and the same era (2010s).
Memoirs of a Goldfish by Devin Scillian · grades K–3 — Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and the same era (2010s).

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

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

Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon · grades 9–12 — Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and the same era (2010s).
Girl, Stolen by April Henry · grades 9–12 — Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and the same era (2010s).
The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon · grades 9–12 — Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and the same era (2010s).
What If It's Us by Becky Albertalli · grades 9–12 — Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and the same era (2010s).

Common questions

What books are similar to Best Friends?: The 10 closest matches to Best Friends by Shannon Hale on ReadingList include Real Friends, Dangerous, All the Impossible Things, Front Desk, and Ghost Boys. Each is scored on shared themes, shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 4–8), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.
Are books like Best Friends reading-level appropriate?: Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 4–8), 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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