Books like The Unwanteds

If you liked The Unwanteds, read A Million Ways Home, Blended, or Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared award lists and reading level.

Closest match: A Million Ways Home by Dianna Dorisi-Winget

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Looking for books like The Unwanteds by Lisa McMann? 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 4–6 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

10 books similar to The Unwanteds

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Why each is a match

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A Million Ways Homegrades 4–6
Both on the Mark Twain Readers Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (4–6), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
Blended610L
Both on the Mark Twain Readers Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (3–7), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Librarygrades 4–6
Both on the California Young Reader Medal list (+2 more shared lists), overlapping grades (4–6), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
One for Sorrowgrades 4–6
Both on the Mark Twain Readers Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (4–6), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
Out of My Mind700L
Both on the California Young Reader Medal list (+3 more shared lists), overlapping grades (4–7), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
Runaway Twingrades 4–6
Both on the Mark Twain Readers Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (4–6), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
The War That Saved My Life580L
Both on the California Young Reader Medal list (+3 more shared lists), overlapping grades (4–7), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
White Birdgrades 4–6
Both on the Mark Twain Readers Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (4–6), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
Wonder790L
Both on the California Young Reader Medal list (+2 more shared lists), overlapping grades (3–7), and the same era (2010s). Amazon → books like this →
Because of Winn-Dixie610L
Both on the California Young Reader Medal list (+3 more shared lists) and overlapping grades (3–5). Amazon → books like this →

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

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

  • Deep and Dark and Dangerous by Mary Downing Hahn · grades 4–6 — Both on the Mark Twain Readers Award list (+1 more shared list) and overlapping grades (4–6).
  • Millionaires for the Month by Stacy McAnulty · grades 4–6 — Both on the Mark Twain Readers Award list (+1 more shared list) and overlapping grades (4–6).
  • Shiloh by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor · 890L — Both on the Connecticut Nutmeg Book Award list (+1 more shared list) and overlapping grades (3–6).
  • Six Feet Below Zero by Ena Jones · grades 4–6 — Both on the Mark Twain Readers Award list (+1 more shared list) and overlapping grades (4–6).
  • Stolen Children by Peg Kehret · grades 4–6 — Both on the Connecticut Nutmeg Book Award list (+2 more shared lists) and overlapping grades (4–6).

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

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

  • Deep and Dark and Dangerous by Mary Downing Hahn · grades 4–6 — Both on the Mark Twain Readers Award list (+1 more shared list) and overlapping grades (4–6).
  • Millionaires for the Month by Stacy McAnulty · grades 4–6 — Both on the Mark Twain Readers Award list (+1 more shared list) and overlapping grades (4–6).
  • Shiloh by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor · 890L — Both on the Connecticut Nutmeg Book Award list (+1 more shared list) and overlapping grades (3–6).
  • Six Feet Below Zero by Ena Jones · grades 4–6 — Both on the Mark Twain Readers Award list (+1 more shared list) and overlapping grades (4–6).
  • Stolen Children by Peg Kehret · grades 4–6 — Both on the Connecticut Nutmeg Book Award list (+2 more shared lists) and overlapping grades (4–6).

Common questions

What books are similar to The Unwanteds?
The 10 closest matches to The Unwanteds by Lisa McMann on ReadingList include A Million Ways Home, Blended, Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library, One for Sorrow, and Out of My Mind. Each is scored on shared themes, shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 4–6), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.
Are books like The Unwanteds reading-level appropriate?
Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 4–6), 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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