What books are similar to Just Like Millie?

The 10 closest matches to Just Like Millie by Lauren Castillo on ReadingList include I Lived Inside a Whale, The Yellow Bus, Knight Owl and Early Bird, Night in the City, and A Mischief of Mice. Each is scored on shared themes (friendship, courage, and kindness), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades K–3), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.

Are books like Just Like Millie reading-level appropriate?

Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades K–3), 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 Just Like Millie

If you liked Just Like Millie, read I Lived Inside a Whale, The Yellow Bus, or Knight Owl and Early Bird — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Closest match: I Lived Inside a Whale by Xin Li — shares friendship and kindness

Get it on Amazon →

Affiliate link: as an Amazon Associate, ReadingList earns from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.

Looking for books like Just Like Millie by Lauren Castillo (Picture Book · grades K–3)? It’s most often read for its themes of friendship, courage, and kindness. 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 K–3 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

Try it on audio — free. Kids who struggle with the print versions often finish the assigned books by listening.

Listen free on Audiblestarts instantly

New members only · many assigned titles are included with the membership. As an Amazon Associate, ReadingList earns from qualifying purchases and membership trials at no extra cost to you.

Why each is a match

Amazon links below are affiliate links — as an Amazon Associate, ReadingList earns from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.

I Lived Inside a Whalegrades K–3: Shares themes of friendship and kindness, both on the Colorado Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Picture Book). Amazon → books like this →
The Yellow Busgrades K–3: Shares themes of kindness, both on the Colorado Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Picture Book). Amazon → books like this →
Knight Owl and Early Birdgrades K–3: Shares themes of friendship and courage, both on the Colorado Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Picture Book). Amazon → books like this →
Night in the Citygrades K–2: Shares themes of kindness, same genre (Picture Book), and overlapping grades (K–2). Amazon → books like this →
A Mischief of Micegrades K–3: Shares themes of friendship, both on the Colorado Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Picture Book). Amazon → books like this →
Corduroy600L: Shares themes of friendship and kindness, same genre (Picture Book), and overlapping grades (K–3). Amazon → books like this →
The Giving Tree530L: Shares themes of friendship and kindness, same genre (Picture Book), and overlapping grades (K–5). Amazon → books like this →
Knight Owlgrades K–3: Shares themes of friendship and courage, same genre (Picture Book), and overlapping grades (K–3). Amazon → books like this →
Millie Fleur's Poison Gardengrades K–3: Both on the Colorado Children's Book Award list, same genre (Picture Book), and overlapping grades (K–3). Amazon → books like this →
Time to Make Artgrades K–3: Both on the Colorado Children's Book Award list, same genre (Picture Book), and overlapping grades (K–3). Amazon → books like this →

Books like Just Like Millie for younger readers (K–2)

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

Wild Blue: Taming a Big-Kid Bike by Dashka Slater · grades K–2 — Shares themes of courage, same genre (Picture Book), and overlapping grades (K–2).
Buffalo Fluffalo by Bess Kalb · grades K–2 — Shares themes of friendship, same genre (Picture Book), and overlapping grades (K–2).
Gibberish by Young Vo · grades K–3 — Shares themes of friendship, same genre (Picture Book), and overlapping grades (K–3).
How This Book Got Red by Margaret Chiu Greanias · grades K–2 — Shares themes of friendship, same genre (Picture Book), and overlapping grades (K–2).
No Cats in the Library by Lauren Emmons · grades K–2 — Shares themes of friendship, same genre (Picture Book), and overlapping grades (K–2).

Books like Just Like Millie for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

Gibberish by Young Vo · grades K–3 — Shares themes of friendship, same genre (Picture Book), and overlapping grades (K–3).
100 Mighty Dragons All Named Broccoli by David LaRochelle · grades K–3 — Same genre (Picture Book), overlapping grades (K–3), and the same era (2020s).
A Land of Books by Duncan Tonatiuh · grades K–5 — Same genre (Picture Book), overlapping grades (K–5), and the same era (2020s).
A Letter for Bob by Kim Rogers · grades K–3 — Same genre (Picture Book), overlapping grades (K–3), and the same era (2020s).
Beautiful Blackbird by Ashley Bryan · grades K–5 — Same genre (Picture Book), overlapping grades (K–5), and the same era (2020s).

Books like Just Like Millie for middle school (grades 6–8)

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

Heroes by Alan Gratz · grades 6–8 — Shares themes of friendship and courage.
Impossible Creatures by Katherine Rundell · grades 4–8 — Shares themes of friendship and courage.
Simon Sort of Says by Erin Bow · grades 6–8 — Shares themes of friendship and courage.
Skyriders by Polly Holyoke · grades 6–8 — Shares themes of friendship and courage.
The First State of Being by Erin Entrada Kelly · grades 6–8 — Shares themes of friendship and courage.

Common questions

What books are similar to Just Like Millie?: The 10 closest matches to Just Like Millie by Lauren Castillo on ReadingList include I Lived Inside a Whale, The Yellow Bus, Knight Owl and Early Bird, Night in the City, and A Mischief of Mice. Each is scored on shared themes (friendship, courage, and kindness), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades K–3), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.
Are books like Just Like Millie reading-level appropriate?: Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades K–3), 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.

← Back to Just Like Millie