What books are similar to The Lifters?

The 10 closest matches to The Lifters by Dave Eggers on ReadingList include Peter and the Starcatchers, Word Eater, The Forbidden Library, The Sword of Summer, and Keeper of the Lost Cities. Each is scored on shared themes (detective and mystery stories, underground areas, and magic), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 3–8), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.

Are books like The Lifters reading-level appropriate?

Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 3–8), 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 Lifters

If you liked The Lifters, read Peter and the Starcatchers, Word Eater, or The Forbidden Library — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Closest match: Peter and the Starcatchers by Dave Barry — shares magic

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Looking for books like The Lifters by Dave Eggers (Fantasy · grades 3–8)? It’s most often read for its themes of detective and mystery stories, underground areas, and magic. 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 3–8 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

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Why each is a match

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Peter and the Starcatchersgrades 3–8: Shares themes of magic, both on the Arizona Grand Canyon Reader Award list, and same genre (Fantasy). Amazon → books like this →
Word Eatergrades 3–8: Shares themes of magic, both on the Arizona Grand Canyon Reader Award list, and same genre (Fantasy). Amazon → books like this →
The Forbidden Librarygrades 2–8: Shares themes of magic, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (2–8). Amazon → books like this →
The Sword of Summergrades 3–8: Shares themes of magic, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (3–8). Amazon → books like this →
Keeper of the Lost Citiesgrades 4–8: Shares themes of magic and friendship, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (4–8). Amazon → books like this →
Amari and the Night Brothersgrades 4–7: Shares themes of magic, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (4–7). Amazon → books like this →
Her Right Footgrades 3–8: Is by Dave Eggers, the same author, overlapping grades (3–8), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
Mary Poppinsgrades 4–6: Shares themes of magic, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (4–6). Amazon → books like this →
The Headless Cupidgrades 4–8: Shares themes of magic, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (4–8). Amazon → books like this →
The Red Pyramidgrades 3–8: Both on the Arizona Grand Canyon Reader Award list, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (3–8). Amazon → books like this →

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

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

Down the Rabbit Hole by Peter Abrahams · grades 2–8 — Shares themes of detective and mystery stories and overlapping grades (2–8).
The Paper Crane by Molly Bang · grades K–1 — Same genre (Fantasy).
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum · grades K–1 — Same genre (Fantasy).

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

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

The Wishing Spell by Chris Colfer · grades 3–8 — Shares themes of magic, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (3–8).
Molly Moon's Incredible Book of Hypnotism by Georgia Byng · grades 3–8 — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Arizona Grand Canyon Reader Award list, and same genre (Fantasy).
The Indian in the Cupboard by Lynne Reid Banks · grades 3–6 — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Arizona Grand Canyon Reader Award list, and same genre (Fantasy).
Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine · grades 4–7 — Both on the Arizona Grand Canyon Reader Award list, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (4–7).
Running Out of Time by Margaret Peterson Haddix · grades 3–8 — Both on the Arizona Grand Canyon Reader Award list, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (3–8).

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

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

The Wishing Spell by Chris Colfer · grades 3–8 — Shares themes of magic, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (3–8).
Molly Moon's Incredible Book of Hypnotism by Georgia Byng · grades 3–8 — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Arizona Grand Canyon Reader Award list, and same genre (Fantasy).
The Indian in the Cupboard by Lynne Reid Banks · grades 3–6 — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Arizona Grand Canyon Reader Award list, and same genre (Fantasy).
Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine · grades 4–7 — Both on the Arizona Grand Canyon Reader Award list, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (4–7).
Running Out of Time by Margaret Peterson Haddix · grades 3–8 — Both on the Arizona Grand Canyon Reader Award list, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (3–8).

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

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

Cinder by Marissa Meyer · grades 9–12 — Same genre (Fantasy) and the same era (2010s).
Everless by Sara Holland · grades 9–12 — Same genre (Fantasy) and the same era (2010s).
Fake ID by L. R. Giles · grades 9–12 — Shares themes of detective and mystery stories.
The House in the Cerulean Sea by T. J. Klune · grades 9–12 — Same genre (Fantasy) and the same era (2010s).
The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan · grades 5–9 — Shares themes of friendship, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (5–9).

Common questions

What books are similar to The Lifters?: The 10 closest matches to The Lifters by Dave Eggers on ReadingList include Peter and the Starcatchers, Word Eater, The Forbidden Library, The Sword of Summer, and Keeper of the Lost Cities. Each is scored on shared themes (detective and mystery stories, underground areas, and magic), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 3–8), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.
Are books like The Lifters reading-level appropriate?: Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 3–8), 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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