What books are similar to The Giver?

The 10 closest matches to The Giver by Lois Lowry on ReadingList include Number the Stars, The Graveyard Book, Restart, Walk Two Moons, and Where the Red Fern Grows. Each is scored on shared themes (conformity vs individuality, memory, and utopia and dystopia), 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 Giver 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 Giver

If you liked The Giver, read Number the Stars, The Graveyard Book, or Restart — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Closest match: Number the Stars by Lois Lowry

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Looking for books like The Giver by Lois Lowry (Dystopian Fiction · 760L · grades 6–8)? It’s most often read for its themes of conformity vs individuality, memory, and utopia and dystopia. 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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Number the Stars670L: Is by Lois Lowry, the same author, both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+5 more shared lists), and a close reading level (670L vs 760L). Amazon → books like this →
The Graveyard Book820L: Shares themes of coming of age, both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+2 more shared lists), and a close reading level (820L vs 760L). Amazon → books like this →
Restart730L: Shares themes of memory, both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+5 more shared lists), and a close reading level (730L vs 760L). Amazon → books like this →
Walk Two Moons770L: Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list (+4 more shared lists), a close reading level (770L vs 760L), and the same era (1990s). Amazon → books like this →
Where the Red Fern Grows700L: Shares themes of coming of age, both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+2 more shared lists), and a close reading level (700L vs 760L). Amazon → books like this →
The Crossover750L: Both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+6 more shared lists) and a close reading level (750L vs 760L). Amazon → books like this →
The Hunger Games810L: Both on the Arizona Grand Canyon Reader Award list (+12 more shared lists) and a close reading level (810L vs 760L). Amazon → books like this →
Maniac Magee820L: Both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+9 more shared lists), a close reading level (820L vs 760L), and the same era (1990s). Amazon → books like this →
A Wrinkle in Time740L: Both on the Newbery Medal list (+2 more shared lists) and a close reading level (740L vs 760L). Amazon → books like this →
The Witch of Blackbird Pond850L: Shares themes of coming of age, both on the Newbery Medal list (+1 more shared list), and a close reading level (850L vs 760L). Amazon → books like this →

Books like The Giver for younger readers (K–2)

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

The Mouse and the Motorcycle by Beverly Cleary · 860L — Shares themes of coming of age, both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+3 more shared lists), and a close reading level (860L vs 760L).
The Adventures of Captain Underpants by Dav Pilkey · 720L — Both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+1 more shared list), a close reading level (720L vs 760L), and the same era (1990s).
Ramona the Pest by Beverly Cleary · 750L — Both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list (+2 more shared lists) and a close reading level (750L vs 760L).
Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume · 470L — Both on the Arizona Grand Canyon Reader Award list (+4 more shared lists).
Martha Speaks by Susan Meddaugh · grades K–3 — Both on the Mountain Laurel Book Award (Pennsylvania) list (+1 more shared list) and the same era (1990s).

Books like The Giver for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

The Mouse and the Motorcycle by Beverly Cleary · 860L — Shares themes of coming of age, both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+3 more shared lists), and a close reading level (860L vs 760L).
The Adventures of Captain Underpants by Dav Pilkey · 720L — Both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+1 more shared list), a close reading level (720L vs 760L), and the same era (1990s).
Ghost by Jason Reynolds · 730L — Both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+6 more shared lists) and a close reading level (730L vs 760L).
Refugee by Alan Gratz · 800L — Both on the Arizona Grand Canyon Reader Award list (+7 more shared lists) and a close reading level (800L vs 760L).
Ramona the Pest by Beverly Cleary · 750L — Both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list (+2 more shared lists) and a close reading level (750L vs 760L).

Books like The Giver for middle school (grades 6–8)

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

Ghost by Jason Reynolds · 730L — Both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+6 more shared lists) and a close reading level (730L vs 760L).
Refugee by Alan Gratz · 800L — Both on the Arizona Grand Canyon Reader Award list (+7 more shared lists) and a close reading level (800L vs 760L).
Holes by Louis Sachar · 660L — Both on the Arizona Grand Canyon Reader Award list (+13 more shared lists), a close reading level (660L vs 760L), and the same era (1990s).
Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse · 740L — Both on the Newbery Medal list (+2 more shared lists), a close reading level (740L vs 760L), and the same era (1990s).
Rebound by Kwame Alexander · 780L — Shares themes of coming of age, both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list, and a close reading level (780L vs 760L).

Books like The Giver for high school & teens (grades 9–12)

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

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green · 850L — Shares themes of coming of age, both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+6 more shared lists), and a close reading level (850L vs 760L).
The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky · 720L — Shares themes of coming of age, both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list, and a close reading level (720L vs 760L).
Refugee by Alan Gratz · 800L — Both on the Arizona Grand Canyon Reader Award list (+7 more shared lists) and a close reading level (800L vs 760L).
The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood · 750L — Both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list, same genre (Dystopian Fiction), and a close reading level (750L vs 760L).
The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien · 880L — Shares themes of memory, both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list, and a close reading level (880L vs 760L).

What to read after The Giver Quartet

The Giver is book 1 of 4 in Lois Lowry’s The Giver Quartet series. Not done with the series yet? Follow the The Giver Quartet reading order first — then come back for the matches above.

Common questions

What books are similar to The Giver?: The 10 closest matches to The Giver by Lois Lowry on ReadingList include Number the Stars, The Graveyard Book, Restart, Walk Two Moons, and Where the Red Fern Grows. Each is scored on shared themes (conformity vs individuality, memory, and utopia and dystopia), 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 Giver 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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