What books are similar to One Crazy Summer?

The 10 closest matches to One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia on ReadingList include Bud, Not Buddy, Gone Crazy in Alabama, P.S. Be Eleven, Out of the Dust, and Brown Girl Dreaming. Each is scored on shared themes (family, race, and civil rights), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 5–8), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.

Are books like One Crazy Summer reading-level appropriate?

Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 5–8), 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 One Crazy Summer

If you liked One Crazy Summer, read Bud, Not Buddy, Gone Crazy in Alabama, or P.S. Be Eleven — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Closest match: Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis — shares family and race

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Looking for books like One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia (Historical Fiction · 750L · grades 5–8)? It’s most often read for its themes of family, race, and civil rights. 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 5–8 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

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Why each is a match

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Bud, Not Buddy950L: Shares themes of family and race, both on the Coretta Scott King Author Award list (+1 more shared list), and same genre (Historical Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Gone Crazy in Alabamagrades 5–8: Is by Rita Williams-Garcia, the same author, both on the Coretta Scott King Author Award list, and overlapping grades (5–8). Amazon → books like this →
P.S. Be Elevengrades 5–8: Is by Rita Williams-Garcia, the same author, both on the Coretta Scott King Author Award list, and overlapping grades (5–8). Amazon → books like this →
Out of the Dust740L: Shares themes of mother-daughter relationship, both on the Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction list (+1 more shared list), and a close reading level (740L vs 750L). Amazon → books like this →
Brown Girl Dreaming990L: Shares themes of family and civil rights, both on the Coretta Scott King Author Award list (+1 more shared list), and a close reading level (990L vs 750L). Amazon → books like this →
Refugee800L: Shares themes of family, same genre (Historical Fiction), and a close reading level (800L vs 750L). Amazon → books like this →
Echo680L: Shares themes of family, same genre (Historical Fiction), and a close reading level (680L vs 750L). Amazon → books like this →
The Watsons Go to Birmingham—19631000L: Shares themes of family and civil rights, same genre (Historical Fiction), and a close reading level (1000L vs 750L). Amazon → books like this →
Maniac Magee820L: Shares themes of family and race, both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list, and a close reading level (820L vs 750L). Amazon → books like this →
Blended610L: Shares themes of family and race, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list (+1 more shared list), and a close reading level (610L vs 750L). Amazon → books like this →

Books like One Crazy Summer for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park · 720L — Same genre (Historical Fiction), a close reading level (720L vs 750L), and the same era (2010s).
The Cay by Theodore Taylor · grades 5–8 — Shares themes of race, same genre (Historical Fiction), and overlapping grades (5–8).
Ghost Boys by Jewell Parker Rhodes · 360L — Shares themes of family and race, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, and overlapping grades (4–7).
Front Desk by Kelly Yang · 640L — Shares themes of family and race, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, and a close reading level (640L vs 750L).
The Crossover by Kwame Alexander · 750L — Shares themes of family, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list (+1 more shared list), and a close reading level (750L vs 750L).

Books like One Crazy Summer for middle school (grades 6–8)

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

A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park · 720L — Same genre (Historical Fiction), a close reading level (720L vs 750L), and the same era (2010s).
The Cay by Theodore Taylor · grades 5–8 — Shares themes of race, same genre (Historical Fiction), and overlapping grades (5–8).
Ghost Boys by Jewell Parker Rhodes · 360L — Shares themes of family and race, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, and overlapping grades (4–7).
Front Desk by Kelly Yang · 640L — Shares themes of family and race, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, and a close reading level (640L vs 750L).
The Parker Inheritance by Varian Johnson · 610L — Shares themes of race, both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list, and a close reading level (610L vs 750L).

Books like One Crazy Summer for high school & teens (grades 9–12)

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

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd · 840L — Shares themes of family and race, both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list, and a close reading level (840L vs 750L).
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas · 590L — Shares themes of family and race, both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list, and a close reading level (590L vs 750L).
Just Mercy (Adapted for Young Adults) by Bryan Stevenson · 1130L — Shares themes of race and both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list.
The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan · 930L — Shares themes of family and mother-daughter relationship, both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list, and a close reading level (930L vs 750L).
Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson · 780L — Both on the Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction list and a close reading level (780L vs 750L).

Common questions

What books are similar to One Crazy Summer?: The 10 closest matches to One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia on ReadingList include Bud, Not Buddy, Gone Crazy in Alabama, P.S. Be Eleven, Out of the Dust, and Brown Girl Dreaming. Each is scored on shared themes (family, race, and civil rights), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 5–8), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.
Are books like One Crazy Summer reading-level appropriate?: Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 5–8), 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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