Books like The Thing About Luck

If you liked The Thing About Luck, read Cracker The Best Dog in Vietnam, Kira-Kira, or 1919 The Year That Changed America — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared award lists and reading level.

Looking for books like The Thing About Luck by Cynthia Kadohata? 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 5–8 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

10 books similar to The Thing About Luck

Reading the whole similar-books list? Kids who struggle with the print versions often finish the assigned books by listening.

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Why each is a match

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Cracker The Best Dog in Vietnamgrades 6–8
Is by Cynthia Kadohata, the same author and overlapping grades (6–8). Amazon → books like this →
Kira-Kiragrades 4–7
Is by Cynthia Kadohata, the same author and overlapping grades (4–7). Amazon → books like this →
1919 The Year That Changed Americagrades 7–12
Both on the National Book Award for Young People's Literature list, overlapping grades (7–12), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
Brown Girl Dreaming990L
Both on the National Book Award for Young People's Literature list, overlapping grades (5–8), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
Goblin Secretsgrades 4–7
Both on the National Book Award for Young People's Literature list, overlapping grades (4–7), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
Inside Out & Back Again800L
Both on the National Book Award for Young People's Literature list, overlapping grades (4–8), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
Mockingbirdgrades 5–8
Both on the National Book Award for Young People's Literature list, overlapping grades (5–8), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
The Penderwicksgrades 4–7
Both on the National Book Award for Young People's Literature list, overlapping grades (4–7), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
The Poet X800L
Both on the National Book Award for Young People's Literature list, overlapping grades (8–12), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
A First Time for Everythinggrades 4–8
Both on the National Book Award for Young People's Literature list and overlapping grades (4–8). Amazon → books like this →

Books like The Thing About Luck for high school & teens (grades 9–12)

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

  • Challenger Deep by Neal Shusterman · grades 9–12 — Both on the National Book Award for Young People's Literature list and the same era (2010s).
  • Far From The Tree by Robin Benway · grades 9–12 — Both on the National Book Award for Young People's Literature list and the same era (2010s).
  • March Book Three by John Lewis · grades 9–12 — Both on the National Book Award for Young People's Literature list and the same era (2010s).
  • The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume I by M. T. Anderson · grades 9–12 — Both on the National Book Award for Young People's Literature list and the same era (2010s).
  • What I Saw and How I Lied by Judy Blundell · grades 9–12 — Both on the National Book Award for Young People's Literature list and the same era (2010s).

Book data last updated 2026-07-07. Matches are computed from each book’s cited attributes — see the methodology.

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