What books are similar to The Fountains of Silence?

The 10 closest matches to The Fountains of Silence by Ruta Sepetys on ReadingList include Salt to the Sea, I Must Betray You, All We Have Left, Private Peaceful, and Torch. Each is scored on shared themes (dictatorship--fiction., hotels, and motels), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 9–12), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.

Are books like The Fountains of Silence reading-level appropriate?

Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 9–12), 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 Fountains of Silence

If you liked The Fountains of Silence, read Salt to the Sea, I Must Betray You, or All We Have Left — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared award lists and reading level.

Closest match: Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys

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Looking for books like The Fountains of Silence by Ruta Sepetys (Historical Fiction · grades 9–12)? It’s most often read for its themes of dictatorship--fiction., hotels, and motels. 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 9–12 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

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Why each is a match

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Salt to the Sea560L: Is by Ruta Sepetys, the same author, both on the California Young Reader Medal list, and same genre (Historical Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
I Must Betray Yougrades 9–12: Is by Ruta Sepetys, the same author, both on the California Young Reader Medal list, and overlapping grades (9–12). Amazon → books like this →
All We Have Leftgrades 9–12: Both on the California Young Reader Medal list, same genre (Historical Fiction), and overlapping grades (9–12). Amazon → books like this →
Private Peacefulgrades 9–12: Both on the California Young Reader Medal list, same genre (Historical Fiction), and overlapping grades (9–12). Amazon → books like this →
Torchgrades 9–12: Both on the California Young Reader Medal list, same genre (Historical Fiction), and overlapping grades (9–12). Amazon → books like this →
A Farewell to Armsgrades 11–12: Same genre (Historical Fiction) and overlapping grades (11–12). Amazon → books like this →
A Tale of Two Cities1170L: Same genre (Historical Fiction) and overlapping grades (9–12). Amazon → books like this →
Antony and Cleopatragrades 9–10: Same genre (Historical Fiction) and overlapping grades (9–10). Amazon → books like this →
Billy Buddgrades 11–12: Same genre (Historical Fiction) and overlapping grades (11–12). Amazon → books like this →
Brooklyngrades 9–10: Same genre (Historical Fiction) and overlapping grades (9–10). Amazon → books like this →

Books like The Fountains of Silence for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

A Night Divided by Jennifer A. Nielsen · grades 5–8 — Both on the California Young Reader Medal list, same genre (Historical Fiction), and the same era (2010s).
Barbed Wire Baseball by Marissa Moss · grades 3–8 — Both on the California Young Reader Medal list, same genre (Historical Fiction), and the same era (2010s).
Echo by Pam Muñoz Ryan · 680L — Both on the California Young Reader Medal list, same genre (Historical Fiction), and the same era (2010s).
A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park · 720L — Same genre (Historical Fiction) and the same era (2010s).
I Survived the Great Chicago Fire, 1871 by Lauren Tarshis · grades 3–6 — Same genre (Historical Fiction) and the same era (2010s).

Books like The Fountains of Silence for middle school (grades 6–8)

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

A Night Divided by Jennifer A. Nielsen · grades 5–8 — Both on the California Young Reader Medal list, same genre (Historical Fiction), and the same era (2010s).
Barbed Wire Baseball by Marissa Moss · grades 3–8 — Both on the California Young Reader Medal list, same genre (Historical Fiction), and the same era (2010s).
Echo by Pam Muñoz Ryan · 680L — Both on the California Young Reader Medal list, same genre (Historical Fiction), and the same era (2010s).
A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park · 720L — Same genre (Historical Fiction) and the same era (2010s).
I Survived the Great Chicago Fire, 1871 by Lauren Tarshis · grades 3–6 — Same genre (Historical Fiction) and the same era (2010s).

Books like The Fountains of Silence for high school & teens (grades 9–12)

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

Scythe by Neal Shusterman · grades 7–12 — Both on the Battle of the Books (state reading programs) list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (7–12), and the same era (2010s).
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz · grades 9–12 — Both on the Battle of the Books (state reading programs) list, overlapping grades (9–12), and the same era (2010s).
Darius the Great Is Not Okay by Adib Khorram · grades 9–12 — Both on the Battle of the Books (state reading programs) list, overlapping grades (9–12), and the same era (2010s).
Death and the King's Horseman by Wole Soyinka · grades 11–12 — Same genre (Historical Fiction) and overlapping grades (11–12).
Far From The Tree by Robin Benway · grades 9–12 — Both on the Battle of the Books (state reading programs) list, overlapping grades (9–12), and the same era (2010s).

Common questions

What books are similar to The Fountains of Silence?: The 10 closest matches to The Fountains of Silence by Ruta Sepetys on ReadingList include Salt to the Sea, I Must Betray You, All We Have Left, Private Peaceful, and Torch. Each is scored on shared themes (dictatorship--fiction., hotels, and motels), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 9–12), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.
Are books like The Fountains of Silence reading-level appropriate?: Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 9–12), 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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