What books are similar to Don’t You Dare Read This, Mrs. Dunphrey?

The 10 closest matches to Don’t You Dare Read This, Mrs. Dunphrey by Margaret Peterson Haddix on ReadingList include The True Colors of Caitlynne Jackson, Among the Hidden, Perfect, Spying on Miss Müller, and Running Out of Time. Each is scored on shared themes (child abuse, diaries, and fathers and daughters), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 6–9), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.

Are books like Don’t You Dare Read This, Mrs. Dunphrey reading-level appropriate?

Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 6–9), 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 Don’t You Dare Read This, Mrs. Dunphrey

If you liked Don’t You Dare Read This, Mrs. Dunphrey, read The True Colors of Caitlynne Jackson, Among the Hidden, or Perfect — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Closest match: The True Colors of Caitlynne Jackson by Carol Lynch Williams — shares child abuse

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Looking for books like Don’t You Dare Read This, Mrs. Dunphrey by Margaret Peterson Haddix (Realistic Fiction · grades 6–9)? It’s most often read for its themes of child abuse, diaries, and fathers and daughters. 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 6–9 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 True Colors of Caitlynne Jacksongrades 6–9: Shares themes of child abuse, both on the Nebraska Golden Sower Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Among the Hiddengrades 5–8: Is by Margaret Peterson Haddix, the same author, overlapping grades (5–8), and the same era (1990s). Amazon → books like this →
Perfectgrades 6–9: Shares themes of fathers and daughters, both on the Nebraska Golden Sower Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Spying on Miss Müllergrades 6–8: Shares themes of fathers and daughters, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (6–8). Amazon → books like this →
Running Out of Timegrades 3–8: Is by Margaret Peterson Haddix, the same author, both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, and overlapping grades (3–8). Amazon → books like this →
Danger Zonegrades 6–9: Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list (+1 more shared list), same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (6–9). Amazon → books like this →
The Compoundgrades 6–9: Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list (+1 more shared list), same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (6–9). Amazon → books like this →
Breathing Underwatergrades 9–12: Shares themes of child abuse and diaries, both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Good Night, Mr. Tomgrades 6–8: Shares themes of child abuse and overlapping grades (6–8). Amazon → books like this →
Stridergrades 6–8: Shares themes of diaries and overlapping grades (6–8). Amazon → books like this →

Books like Don’t You Dare Read This, Mrs. Dunphrey for younger readers (K–2)

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

Diary of a Wombat by Jackie French · grades K–3 — Shares themes of diaries, both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction).
Soap! Soap! Don’t Forget the Soap! by Tom Birdseye · grades K–3 — Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list (+1 more shared list) and the same era (1990s).
Martha Speaks by Susan Meddaugh · grades K–3 — Both on the Nebraska Golden Sower Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and the same era (1990s).
No Such Thing by Jackie French Koller · grades K–3 — Both on the Nebraska Golden Sower Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and the same era (1990s).
Riptide by Frances Ward Weller · grades K–3 — Both on the Nebraska Golden Sower Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and the same era (1990s).

Books like Don’t You Dare Read This, Mrs. Dunphrey for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

Diary of a Wombat by Jackie French · grades K–3 — Shares themes of diaries, both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction).
Call Me Hope by Gretchen Olson · grades 3–5 — Shares themes of child abuse and same genre (Realistic Fiction).
The Diary of a Killer Cat by Anne Fine · grades 3–5 — Shares themes of diaries.
Soap! Soap! Don’t Forget the Soap! by Tom Birdseye · grades K–3 — Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list (+1 more shared list) and the same era (1990s).
Martha Speaks by Susan Meddaugh · grades K–3 — Both on the Nebraska Golden Sower Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and the same era (1990s).

Common questions

What books are similar to Don’t You Dare Read This, Mrs. Dunphrey?: The 10 closest matches to Don’t You Dare Read This, Mrs. Dunphrey by Margaret Peterson Haddix on ReadingList include The True Colors of Caitlynne Jackson, Among the Hidden, Perfect, Spying on Miss Müller, and Running Out of Time. Each is scored on shared themes (child abuse, diaries, and fathers and daughters), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 6–9), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.
Are books like Don’t You Dare Read This, Mrs. Dunphrey reading-level appropriate?: Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 6–9), 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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Books like Don’t You Dare Read This, Mrs. Dunphrey

10 books similar to Don’t You Dare Read This, Mrs. Dunphrey

Why each is a match

Books like Don’t You Dare Read This, Mrs. Dunphrey for younger readers (K–2)

Books like Don’t You Dare Read This, Mrs. Dunphrey for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

Common questions

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