What books are similar to Control Freaks?

The 10 closest matches to Control Freaks by J.E. Thomas on ReadingList include Confessions of a Class Clown, The First State of Being, Operation Final Notice, Shinji Takahashi and the Mark of the Coatl, and Popcorn. Each is scored on shared themes (friendship, perseverance, and school), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 6–8), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.

Are books like Control Freaks reading-level appropriate?

Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 6–8), 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 Control Freaks

If you liked Control Freaks, read Confessions of a Class Clown, The First State of Being, or Operation Final Notice — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Closest match: Confessions of a Class Clown by Arianne Costner — shares friendship and school

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Looking for books like Control Freaks by J.E. Thomas (Middle Grade Fiction · grades 6–8)? It’s most often read for its themes of friendship, perseverance, and school. 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 6–8 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

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Why each is a match

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Confessions of a Class Clowngrades 6–8: Shares themes of friendship, school, and identity, both on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
The First State of Beinggrades 6–8: Shares themes of friendship and identity, both on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Operation Final Noticegrades 4–8: Shares themes of friendship and perseverance, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–8). Amazon → books like this →
Shinji Takahashi and the Mark of the Coatlgrades 6–8: Shares themes of perseverance and identity, both on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award list, and overlapping grades (6–8). Amazon → books like this →
Popcorngrades 4–8: Shares themes of school, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–8). Amazon → books like this →
Harriet the Spygrades 4–7: Shares themes of friendship, school, and identity, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–7). Amazon → books like this →
Mid-Airgrades 5–8: Shares themes of friendship, both on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Simon Sort of Saysgrades 6–8: Shares themes of friendship, both on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Restart730L: Shares themes of identity, both on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Skyridersgrades 6–8: Shares themes of friendship and perseverance, both on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award list, and overlapping grades (6–8). Amazon → books like this →

Books like Control Freaks for younger readers (K–2)

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

The Adventures of Captain Underpants by Dav Pilkey · 720L — Shares themes of friendship and school and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
Ramona the Pest by Beverly Cleary · 750L — Shares themes of school and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
Knight Owl by Christopher Denise · grades K–3 — Shares themes of friendship and perseverance.
Knight Owl and Early Bird by Christopher Denise · grades K–3 — Shares themes of friendship and perseverance.
The One and Only Ruby by Katherine Applegate · grades 2–5 — Same genre (Middle Grade Fiction) and the same era (2020s).

Books like Control Freaks for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

J vs. K by Kwame Alexander & Jerry Craft · grades 3–5 — Shares themes of friendship and school, both on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
The House at the Edge of Magic by Amy Sparkes · grades 3–5 — Shares themes of perseverance and identity and both on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award list.
The Adventures of Captain Underpants by Dav Pilkey · 720L — Shares themes of friendship and school and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
Curveball by Pablo Cartaya · grades 3–5 — Shares themes of friendship and perseverance and both on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award list.
Growing Home by Beth Ferry · grades 3–5 — Shares themes of friendship and perseverance and both on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award list.

Books like Control Freaks for middle school (grades 6–8)

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

Grounded by Aisha Saeed, S.K. Ali, Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow & Huda Al-Marashi · grades 4–8 — Shares themes of friendship and identity, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–8).
Brick Dust and Bones by M.R. Fournet · grades 6–8 — Shares themes of perseverance, both on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award list, and overlapping grades (6–8).
Rascal by Sterling North · grades 5–8 — Shares themes of perseverance, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and overlapping grades (5–8).
The Lost Year by Katherine Marsh · grades 6–8 — Shares themes of perseverance, both on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award list, and overlapping grades (6–8).
Boy 2.0 by Tracey Baptiste · grades 4–8 — Shares themes of identity, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–8).

Common questions

What books are similar to Control Freaks?: The 10 closest matches to Control Freaks by J.E. Thomas on ReadingList include Confessions of a Class Clown, The First State of Being, Operation Final Notice, Shinji Takahashi and the Mark of the Coatl, and Popcorn. Each is scored on shared themes (friendship, perseverance, and school), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 6–8), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.
Are books like Control Freaks reading-level appropriate?: Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 6–8), 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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