Books like Smile

Looking for books like Smile by Raina Telgemeier (Middle Grade Graphic Novel · 410L · grades 4–8)? It’s most often read for its themes of growing up, friendship, and self-acceptance. The 10 titlesbelow are the closest matches in the ReadingList database — each scored on shared themes, 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 4–8 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

10 books similar to Smile

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Why each is a match

El Deafo420L
Shares themes of growing up, friendship, and self-acceptance, same genre (Middle Grade Graphic Novel), and a close reading level (420L vs 410L).
Dog Man390L
Shares themes of friendship and humor, same genre (Middle Grade Graphic Novel), and a close reading level (390L vs 410L).
Roller Girl440L
Shares themes of growing up and friendship, same genre (Middle Grade Graphic Novel), and a close reading level (440L vs 410L).
Big Nate: In a Class by Himself500L
Shares themes of friendship and humor, same genre (Middle Grade Graphic Novel), and a close reading level (500L vs 410L).
Diary of a Wimpy Kid950L
Shares themes of growing up, friendship, and humor and overlapping grades (3–7).
Chronicles of a Lizard Nobodygrades 4–8
Shares themes of friendship and humor, same genre (Middle Grade Graphic Novel), and overlapping grades (4–8).
The Cybil Wargrades 3–6
Shares themes of growing up, friendship, and humor and overlapping grades (3–6).
The First Cat in Space Ate Pizzagrades 2–5
Shares themes of friendship and humor, same genre (Middle Grade Graphic Novel), and overlapping grades (2–5).
The Season of Styx Malone510L
Shares themes of growing up and friendship and a close reading level (510L vs 410L).
The 13-Story Treehouse560L
Shares themes of friendship and humor and a close reading level (560L vs 410L).

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