Books like The Million Dollar Shot

If you liked The Million Dollar Shot, read Nightmare at the Book Fair, Satch and Me, or Because of Winn-Dixie — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared award lists and reading level.

Closest match: Nightmare at the Book Fair by Dan Gutman

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Looking for books like The Million Dollar Shot by Dan Gutman? 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 3–6 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

10 books similar to The Million Dollar Shot

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Why each is a match

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Nightmare at the Book Fairgrades 3–8
Is by Dan Gutman, the same author, overlapping grades (3–8), and the same era (2000s). Amazon → books like this →
Satch and Megrades 3–5
Is by Dan Gutman, the same author, overlapping grades (3–5), and the same era (2000s). Amazon → books like this →
Because of Winn-Dixie610L
Both on the California Young Reader Medal list (+4 more shared lists), overlapping grades (3–5), and the same era (2000s). Amazon → books like this →
Stolen Childrengrades 4–6
Both on the Connecticut Nutmeg Book Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (4–6), and the same era (2000s). Amazon → books like this →
The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book 1)740L
Both on the Connecticut Nutmeg Book Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (4–7), and the same era (2000s). Amazon → books like this →
The Old Willis Placegrades 3–6
Both on the Iowa Children's Choice Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (3–6), and the same era (2000s). Amazon → books like this →
The Tale of Despereaux670L
Both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (3–6), and the same era (2000s). Amazon → books like this →
The World According to Humphreygrades 3–6
Both on the Iowa Children's Choice Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (3–6), and the same era (2000s). Amazon → books like this →
A Royal Conundrumgrades 3–6
Both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list (+1 more shared list) and overlapping grades (3–6). Amazon → books like this →
Because of Mr. Teruptgrades 3–5
Both on the Connecticut Nutmeg Book Award list (+1 more shared list) and overlapping grades (3–5). Amazon → books like this →

Books like The Million Dollar Shot for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

  • Bunnicula by Deborah Howe · grades 3–6 — Both on the Iowa Children's Choice Award list (+1 more shared list) and overlapping grades (3–6).
  • Ferris by Kate DiCamillo · grades 3–6 — Both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list (+1 more shared list) and overlapping grades (3–6).
  • Fudge-a-Mania by Judy Blume · grades 3–6 — Both on the California Young Reader Medal list (+2 more shared lists) and overlapping grades (3–6).
  • Holes by Louis Sachar · 660L — Both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list (+1 more shared list) and overlapping grades (4–7).
  • How to Eat Fried Worms by Thomas Rockwell · grades 3–6 — Both on the California Young Reader Medal list (+2 more shared lists) and overlapping grades (3–6).

Books like The Million Dollar Shot for middle school (grades 6–8)

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

  • Unwind by Neal Shusterman · grades 8–12 — Both on the Connecticut Nutmeg Book Award list (+1 more shared list) and the same era (2000s).
  • Bunnicula by Deborah Howe · grades 3–6 — Both on the Iowa Children's Choice Award list (+1 more shared list) and overlapping grades (3–6).
  • Ferris by Kate DiCamillo · grades 3–6 — Both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list (+1 more shared list) and overlapping grades (3–6).
  • Fudge-a-Mania by Judy Blume · grades 3–6 — Both on the California Young Reader Medal list (+2 more shared lists) and overlapping grades (3–6).
  • Holes by Louis Sachar · 660L — Both on the Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award list (+1 more shared list) and overlapping grades (4–7).

Common questions

What books are similar to The Million Dollar Shot?
The 10 closest matches to The Million Dollar Shot by Dan Gutman on ReadingList include Nightmare at the Book Fair, Satch and Me, Because of Winn-Dixie, Stolen Children, and The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book 1). Each is scored on shared themes, shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 3–6), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.
Are books like The Million Dollar Shot reading-level appropriate?
Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 3–6), 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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