What books are similar to The First State of Being?

The 10 closest matches to The First State of Being by Erin Entrada Kelly on ReadingList include Simon Sort of Says, Confessions of a Class Clown, Control Freaks, Hello, Universe, and Mid-Air. Each is scored on shared themes (friendship, identity, and courage), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 6–8), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.

Are books like The First State of Being reading-level appropriate?

Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 6–8), 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 The First State of Being

If you liked The First State of Being, read Simon Sort of Says, Confessions of a Class Clown, or Control Freaks — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Closest match: Simon Sort of Says by Erin Bow — shares friendship and courage

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Looking for books like The First State of Being by Erin Entrada Kelly (Middle Grade Fiction · grades 6–8)? It’s most often read for its themes of friendship, identity, and courage. 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 6–8 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

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Why each is a match

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Simon Sort of Saysgrades 6–8: Shares themes of friendship and courage, both on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Confessions of a Class Clowngrades 6–8: Shares themes of friendship and identity, both on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Control Freaksgrades 6–8: Shares themes of friendship and identity, both on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Hello, Universe690L: Is by Erin Entrada Kelly, the same author, shares themes of friendship, and both on the Newbery Medal list. Amazon → books like this →
Mid-Airgrades 5–8: Shares themes of friendship, both on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Restart730L: Shares themes of identity, both on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Groundedgrades 4–8: Shares themes of friendship and identity, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–8). Amazon → books like this →
Shinji Takahashi and the Mark of the Coatlgrades 6–8: Shares themes of identity and courage, both on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award list, and overlapping grades (6–8). Amazon → books like this →
Holes660L: Shares themes of friendship, both on the Newbery Medal list (+1 more shared list), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Boy 2.0grades 4–8: Shares themes of identity, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–8). Amazon → books like this →

Books like The First State of Being for younger readers (K–2)

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

The One and Only Ruby by Katherine Applegate · grades 2–5 — Same genre (Middle Grade Fiction) and the same era (2020s).
The 13-Story Treehouse by Andy Griffiths · 560L — Shares themes of friendship and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
The Adventures of Captain Underpants by Dav Pilkey · 720L — Shares themes of friendship and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
The Mouse and the Motorcycle by Beverly Cleary · 860L — Shares themes of friendship and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
Just Like Millie by Lauren Castillo · grades K–3 — Shares themes of friendship and courage.

Books like The First State of Being for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

Misfit Mansion by Kay Davault · grades 3–5 — Shares themes of friendship, identity, and courage and both on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award list.
J vs. K by Kwame Alexander & Jerry Craft · grades 3–5 — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
The House at the Edge of Magic by Amy Sparkes · grades 3–5 — Shares themes of identity and courage and both on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award list.
Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo · 610L — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
The Partition Project by Saadia Faruqi · grades 4–8 — Shares themes of identity, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–8).

Books like The First State of Being for middle school (grades 6–8)

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

The Partition Project by Saadia Faruqi · grades 4–8 — Shares themes of identity, same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–8).
Heroes by Alan Gratz · grades 6–8 — Shares themes of friendship and courage, both on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award list, and overlapping grades (6–8).
Skyriders by Polly Holyoke · grades 6–8 — Shares themes of friendship and courage, both on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award list, and overlapping grades (6–8).
Merci Suárez Changes Gears by Meg Medina · 700L — Shares themes of identity, both on the Newbery Medal list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
Brick Dust and Bones by M.R. Fournet · grades 6–8 — Shares themes of courage, both on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award list, and overlapping grades (6–8).

Books like The First State of Being for high school & teens (grades 9–12)

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

Now Let Me Fly: A Portrait of Eugene Bullard by Ronald Wimberly · grades 9–12 — Shares themes of identity and courage.
Touching Spirit Bear by Ben Mikaelsen · grades 6–9 — Shares themes of courage, both on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award list, and overlapping grades (6–9).
I Am Malala (Young Readers Edition) by Malala Yousafzai · 830L — Shares themes of identity and courage and overlapping grades (6–10).
Shut Up, This Is Serious by Carolina Ixta · grades 9–12 — Shares themes of friendship and identity.
The False Prince by Jennifer A. Nielsen · grades 5–9 — Shares themes of identity and courage and overlapping grades (5–9).

Common questions

What books are similar to The First State of Being?: The 10 closest matches to The First State of Being by Erin Entrada Kelly on ReadingList include Simon Sort of Says, Confessions of a Class Clown, Control Freaks, Hello, Universe, and Mid-Air. Each is scored on shared themes (friendship, identity, and courage), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 6–8), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.
Are books like The First State of Being reading-level appropriate?: Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 6–8), 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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