What books are similar to When the Boys Ran the House?

The 10 closest matches to When the Boys Ran the House by Joan Davenport Carris on ReadingList include Fudge, Be a Perfect Person in Just Three Days, My Horrible Secret, Double Fudge, and Ten Rules You Absolutely Must Not Break If You Want to Survive the School Bus. Each is scored on shared themes (humorous stories, responsibility, and brothers), 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 When the Boys Ran the House 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.

Books like When the Boys Ran the House

If you liked When the Boys Ran the House, read Fudge, Be a Perfect Person in Just Three Days, or My Horrible Secret — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Closest match: Fudge by Charlotte Towner Graeber — shares responsibility and boys, fiction

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Looking for books like When the Boys Ran the House by Joan Davenport Carris (Humor · grades 3–6)? It’s most often read for its themes of humorous stories, responsibility, and brothers. 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.

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Why each is a match

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Fudgegrades 4–6: Shares themes of responsibility and boys, fiction, both on the Iowa Children's Choice Award list (+1 more shared list), and overlapping grades (4–6). Amazon → books like this →
Be a Perfect Person in Just Three Daysgrades 4–6: Shares themes of humorous stories and boys, fiction, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (4–6). Amazon → books like this →
My Horrible Secretgrades 4–6: Shares themes of humorous stories and brothers, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (4–6). Amazon → books like this →
Double Fudgegrades 4–6: Shares themes of humorous stories and brothers, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (4–6). Amazon → books like this →
Ten Rules You Absolutely Must Not Break If You Want to Survive the School Busgrades 3–5: Shares themes of humorous stories and brothers, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (3–5). Amazon → books like this →
The Legend of Rock Paper Scissorsgrades 2–8: Shares themes of humorous stories, both on the Young Hoosier Book Award list, and same genre (Humor). Amazon → books like this →
How to Eat Fried Wormsgrades 3–6: Both on the Iowa Children's Choice Award list (+1 more shared list), same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (3–6). Amazon → books like this →
Skinnybonesgrades 3–6: Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (3–6). Amazon → books like this →
Arnie, the Doughnutgrades 2–8: Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (2–8). Amazon → books like this →
Banana Twistgrades 4–6: Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (4–6). Amazon → books like this →

Books like When the Boys Ran the House for younger readers (K–2)

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

A Lion is a Lion by Polly Dunbar · grades K–0 — Shares themes of humorous stories and same genre (Humor).
Dog Breath by Dav Pilkey · grades 2–8 — Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (2–8).
Escargot by Dashka Slater · grades K–2 — Shares themes of humorous stories and same genre (Humor).
Hi! Fly Guy by Tedd Arnold · grades K–1 — Shares themes of humorous stories and same genre (Humor).
No More Dead Dogs by Gordon Korman · grades 2–8 — Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (2–8).

Books like When the Boys Ran the House for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

Dear Mrs. LaRue by Mark Teague · grades 3–5 — Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (3–5).
Dog Breath by Dav Pilkey · grades 2–8 — Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (2–8).
Knocked Out by Nunga-Nungas by Louise Rennison · grades 3–5 — Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (3–5).
No More Dead Dogs by Gordon Korman · grades 2–8 — Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (2–8).
Once Upon a Cool Motorcycle Dude by O'Malley, Kevin · grades 3–5 — Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (3–5).

Books like When the Boys Ran the House for middle school (grades 6–8)

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

Dog Breath by Dav Pilkey · grades 2–8 — Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (2–8).
No More Dead Dogs by Gordon Korman · grades 2–8 — Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (2–8).
The Sixth Grade Nickname Game by Gordon Korman · grades 4–6 — Shares themes of humorous stories, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (4–6).
The Best School Year Ever by Barbara Robinson · grades 3–6 — Both on the Iowa Children's Choice Award list, same genre (Humor), and overlapping grades (3–6).
Nightmare Mountain by Peg Kehret · grades 3–6 — Both on the Iowa Children's Choice Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (3–6), and the same era (1980s).

Books like When the Boys Ran the House for high school & teens (grades 9–12)

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

Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging by Louise Rennison · grades 9–12 — Shares themes of humorous stories and same genre (Humor).
A Sudden Silence by Eve Bunting · grades 9–12 — Shares themes of brothers.
Night Kites by M. E. Kerr · grades 9–12 — Shares themes of brothers.
A Handful of Dust by Evelyn Waugh · grades 11–12 — Same genre (Humor).
Breaking Boxes by A. M. Jenkins · grades 9–12 — Shares themes of brothers.

Common questions

What books are similar to When the Boys Ran the House?: The 10 closest matches to When the Boys Ran the House by Joan Davenport Carris on ReadingList include Fudge, Be a Perfect Person in Just Three Days, My Horrible Secret, Double Fudge, and Ten Rules You Absolutely Must Not Break If You Want to Survive the School Bus. Each is scored on shared themes (humorous stories, responsibility, and brothers), 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 When the Boys Ran the House 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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