What books are similar to Ferris?

The 10 closest matches to Ferris by Kate DiCamillo on ReadingList include Because of Winn-Dixie, The Tale of Despereaux, The Cybil War, A Royal Conundrum, and Dear Mr. Henshaw. Each is scored on shared themes (family, humor, and growing up), 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 Ferris 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.

Books like Ferris

If you liked Ferris, read Because of Winn-Dixie, The Tale of Despereaux, or The Cybil War — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Closest match: Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo

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Looking for books like Ferris by Kate DiCamillo (Realistic Fiction · grades 3–6)? It’s most often read for its themes of family, humor, and growing up. 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.

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Why each is a match

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Because of Winn-Dixie610L: Is by Kate DiCamillo, the same author, both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list (+1 more shared list), and overlapping grades (3–5). Amazon → books like this →
The Tale of Despereaux670L: Is by Kate DiCamillo, the same author, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list (+2 more shared lists), and overlapping grades (3–6). Amazon → books like this →
The Cybil Wargrades 3–6: Shares themes of humor and growing up, both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
A Royal Conundrumgrades 3–6: Shares themes of humor, both on the Battle of the Books (state reading programs) list (+2 more shared lists), and overlapping grades (3–6). Amazon → books like this →
Dear Mr. Henshawgrades 4–6: Shares themes of family and growing up, both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Haiku, Ew! Celebrating the Disgusting Side of Naturegrades 3–6: Shares themes of humor, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list (+1 more shared list), and overlapping grades (3–6). Amazon → books like this →
Dogtowngrades 3–6: Shares themes of humor, both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Diary of a Wimpy Kid950L: Shares themes of family, humor, and growing up and overlapping grades (3–7). Amazon → books like this →
Front Desk640L: Shares themes of family, both on the Battle of the Books (state reading programs) list (+2 more shared lists), and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Summer of the Monkeysgrades 4–7: Shares themes of family and growing up, both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list, and overlapping grades (4–7). Amazon → books like this →

Books like Ferris for younger readers (K–2)

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

Buffalo Fluffalo by Bess Kalb · grades K–2 — Shares themes of humor and both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list (+1 more shared list).
Bink & Gollie by Kate DiCamillo · grades 2–8 — Is by Kate DiCamillo, the same author, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, and overlapping grades (2–8).
Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume · 470L — Shares themes of family and growing up, both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list, and overlapping grades (2–5).
Beanie the Bansheenie by Eoin Colfer · grades 2–5 — Shares themes of humor, both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list, and overlapping grades (2–5).
Ramona the Pest by Beverly Cleary · 750L — Shares themes of family and growing up, both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list, and overlapping grades (2–4).

Books like Ferris for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

Flora and Ulysses by Kate DiCamillo · grades 4–7 — Is by Kate DiCamillo, the same author, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, and overlapping grades (4–7).
Bink & Gollie by Kate DiCamillo · grades 2–8 — Is by Kate DiCamillo, the same author, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, and overlapping grades (2–8).
The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo · grades 3–6 — Is by Kate DiCamillo, the same author, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, and overlapping grades (3–6).
Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume · 470L — Shares themes of family and growing up, both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list, and overlapping grades (2–5).
Beanie the Bansheenie by Eoin Colfer · grades 2–5 — Shares themes of humor, both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list, and overlapping grades (2–5).

Books like Ferris for middle school (grades 6–8)

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

Flora and Ulysses by Kate DiCamillo · grades 4–7 — Is by Kate DiCamillo, the same author, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, and overlapping grades (4–7).
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares · grades 7–10 — Shares themes of family and growing up, both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction).
Bink & Gollie by Kate DiCamillo · grades 2–8 — Is by Kate DiCamillo, the same author, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, and overlapping grades (2–8).
The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo · grades 3–6 — Is by Kate DiCamillo, the same author, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, and overlapping grades (3–6).
Dog Trouble: A Graphic Novel by Kristin Varner · grades 3–6 — Shares themes of humor, both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list, and overlapping grades (3–6).

Books like Ferris 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 family and growing up, both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction).
Brownstone by Samuel Teer · grades 9–12 — Both on the Battle of the Books (state reading programs) list (+1 more shared list) and the same era (2020s).
The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer · grades 7–10 — Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list (+1 more shared list) and the same era (2020s).
Scythe by Neal Shusterman · grades 7–12 — Both on the Battle of the Books (state reading programs) list (+1 more shared list).
Everything We Never Had by Randy Ribay · grades 7–12 — Shares themes of family and both on the Battle of the Books (state reading programs) list.

Common questions

What books are similar to Ferris?: The 10 closest matches to Ferris by Kate DiCamillo on ReadingList include Because of Winn-Dixie, The Tale of Despereaux, The Cybil War, A Royal Conundrum, and Dear Mr. Henshaw. Each is scored on shared themes (family, humor, and growing up), 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 Ferris 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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