What books are similar to El Deafo?

The 10 closest matches to El Deafo by Cece Bell on ReadingList include Smile, Roller Girl, Fish in a Tree, Out of My Mind, and New Kid. Each is scored on shared themes (disability, friendship, and self-acceptance), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 4–6), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.

Are books like El Deafo reading-level appropriate?

Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 4–6), 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.

Books like El Deafo

If you liked El Deafo, read Smile, Roller Girl, or Fish in a Tree — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Closest match: Smile by Raina Telgemeier — shares friendship and self-acceptance

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Looking for books like El Deafo by Cece Bell (Middle Grade Graphic Novel · 420L · grades 4–6)? It’s most often read for its themes of disability, friendship, and self-acceptance. 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 4–6 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

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Why each is a match

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Smile410L: Shares themes of friendship, self-acceptance, and growing up, both on the Dorothy Canfield Fisher / Vermont Golden Dome Book Award list (+5 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Graphic Novel). Amazon → books like this →
Roller Girl440L: Shares themes of friendship and growing up, both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+6 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Graphic Novel). Amazon → books like this →
Fish in a Tree550L: Shares themes of disability and friendship, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list (+2 more shared lists), and a close reading level (550L vs 420L). Amazon → books like this →
Out of My Mind700L: Shares themes of disability and friendship, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list (+5 more shared lists), and overlapping grades (4–7). Amazon → books like this →
New Kidgrades 4–8: Shares themes of friendship, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list (+5 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Graphic Novel). Amazon → books like this →
The War That Saved My Life580L: Shares themes of disability, both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+3 more shared lists), and a close reading level (580L vs 420L). Amazon → books like this →
Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing470L: Shares themes of growing up, both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+2 more shared lists), and a close reading level (470L vs 420L). Amazon → books like this →
The Season of Styx Malone510L: Shares themes of friendship and growing up, both on the Rhode Island Children's Book Award list, and a close reading level (510L vs 420L). Amazon → books like this →
Diary of a Wimpy Kid950L: Shares themes of friendship and growing up, both on the Dorothy Canfield Fisher / Vermont Golden Dome Book Award list (+4 more shared lists), and overlapping grades (3–7). Amazon → books like this →
Rulesgrades 4–7: Shares themes of disability and friendship, both on the Dorothy Canfield Fisher / Vermont Golden Dome Book Award list (+4 more shared lists), and overlapping grades (4–7). Amazon → books like this →

Books like El Deafo for younger readers (K–2)

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

Dog Man by Dav Pilkey · 390L — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Graphic Novel).
The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle · 460L — Shares themes of growing up and a close reading level (460L vs 420L).
Real Friends by Shannon Hale · grades 2–8 — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list (+1 more shared list), and overlapping grades (2–8).
Counting by 7s by Holly Goldberg Sloan · grades 2–8 — Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (2–8), and the same era (2010s).
Ramona the Pest by Beverly Cleary · 750L — Shares themes of growing up, both on the Hawai'i Nēnē Award list (+1 more shared list), and overlapping grades (2–4).

Books like El Deafo for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

Swim Team by Johnnie Christmas · grades 3–7 — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+3 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Graphic Novel).
Dear Mr. Henshaw by Beverly Cleary · grades 4–6 — Shares themes of growing up, both on the Hawai'i Nēnē Award list (+1 more shared list), and overlapping grades (4–6).
Dog Man by Dav Pilkey · 390L — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Graphic Novel).
Ramona and Her Father by Beverly Cleary · grades 4–6 — Shares themes of growing up, both on the Hawai'i Nēnē Award list (+1 more shared list), and overlapping grades (4–6).
Ghost Boys by Jewell Parker Rhodes · 360L — Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list (+2 more shared lists), a close reading level (360L vs 420L), and the same era (2010s).

Books like El Deafo for middle school (grades 6–8)

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

Swim Team by Johnnie Christmas · grades 3–7 — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+3 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Graphic Novel).
Dear Mr. Henshaw by Beverly Cleary · grades 4–6 — Shares themes of growing up, both on the Hawai'i Nēnē Award list (+1 more shared list), and overlapping grades (4–6).
Ramona and Her Father by Beverly Cleary · grades 4–6 — Shares themes of growing up, both on the Hawai'i Nēnē Award list (+1 more shared list), and overlapping grades (4–6).
Ghost Boys by Jewell Parker Rhodes · 360L — Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list (+2 more shared lists), a close reading level (360L vs 420L), and the same era (2010s).
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares · grades 7–10 — Shares themes of friendship and growing up and both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list (+1 more shared list).

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

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

The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares · grades 7–10 — Shares themes of friendship and growing up and both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list (+1 more shared list).
The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo · 800L — Both on the Odyssey Award (Best Audiobook) list (+1 more shared list) and the same era (2010s).
The Fault in Our Stars by John Green · 850L — Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list (+4 more shared lists) and the same era (2010s).
Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon · grades 9–12 — Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list (+2 more shared lists) and the same era (2010s).
Divergent by Veronica Roth · grades 8–12 — Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list (+3 more shared lists) and the same era (2010s).

Common questions

What books are similar to El Deafo?: The 10 closest matches to El Deafo by Cece Bell on ReadingList include Smile, Roller Girl, Fish in a Tree, Out of My Mind, and New Kid. Each is scored on shared themes (disability, friendship, and self-acceptance), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 4–6), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.
Are books like El Deafo reading-level appropriate?: Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 4–6), 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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