What books are similar to Wonder?

The 10 closest matches to Wonder by R.J. Palacio on ReadingList include The Wild Robot, Restart, Out of My Mind, Fish in a Tree, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Each is scored on shared themes (facial difference, kindness, and bullying), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 3–7), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.

Are books like Wonder reading-level appropriate?

Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 3–7), 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 Wonder

If you liked Wonder, read The Wild Robot, Restart, or Out of My Mind — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Closest match: The Wild Robot by Peter Brown — shares kindness and family

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Looking for books like Wonder by R.J. Palacio (Middle Grade Fiction · 790L · grades 3–7)? It’s most often read for its themes of facial difference, kindness, and bullying. 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 3–7 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

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Why each is a match

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The Wild Robot740L: Shares themes of kindness and family, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list (+3 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Restart730L: Shares themes of bullying, both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+9 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Out of My Mind700L: Shares themes of family and friendship, both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+13 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Fish in a Tree550L: Shares themes of bullying and friendship, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list (+1 more shared list), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory810L: Shares themes of kindness and family, both on the North Dakota Flicker Tale Children's Book Award list, and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Pax760L: Shares themes of friendship, both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+3 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Not Nothinggrades 4–8: Shares themes of friendship and empathy, both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+1 more shared list), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Maniac Magee820L: Shares themes of family, both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+14 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
White Birdgrades 4–6: Is by R.J. Palacio, the same author, both on the Mark Twain Readers Award list (+2 more shared lists), and overlapping grades (4–6). Amazon → books like this →
Ramona Quimby, Age 8860L: Shares themes of family, both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+1 more shared list), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction). Amazon → books like this →

Books like Wonder for younger readers (K–2)

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

The Adventures of Captain Underpants by Dav Pilkey · 720L — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+1 more shared list), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
The Mouse and the Motorcycle by Beverly Cleary · 860L — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+3 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume · 470L — Shares themes of family, both on the Arizona Grand Canyon Reader Award list (+6 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
Ramona the Pest by Beverly Cleary · 750L — Shares themes of family, both on the Hawai'i Nēnē Award list (+2 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
My Explosive Diary by Emily Gale · grades 2–8 — Shares themes of bullying, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, and overlapping grades (2–8).

Books like Wonder for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

Hoot by Carl Hiaasen · 760L — Shares themes of bullying and friendship, both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+2 more shared lists), and a close reading level (760L vs 790L).
Holes by Louis Sachar · 660L — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Arizona Grand Canyon Reader Award list (+16 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH by Robert C. O'Brien · 790L — Shares themes of family, both on the Mark Twain Readers Award list (+2 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
Matilda by Roald Dahl · 840L — Both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+6 more shared lists), same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and a close reading level (840L vs 790L).
Blended by Sharon M. Draper · 610L — Shares themes of family, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list (+4 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).

Books like Wonder for middle school (grades 6–8)

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

Hoot by Carl Hiaasen · 760L — Shares themes of bullying and friendship, both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+2 more shared lists), and a close reading level (760L vs 790L).
Holes by Louis Sachar · 660L — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Arizona Grand Canyon Reader Award list (+16 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH by Robert C. O'Brien · 790L — Shares themes of family, both on the Mark Twain Readers Award list (+2 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).
Matilda by Roald Dahl · 840L — Both on the Great Stone Face Book Award list (+6 more shared lists), same genre (Middle Grade Fiction), and a close reading level (840L vs 790L).
Blended by Sharon M. Draper · 610L — Shares themes of family, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list (+4 more shared lists), and same genre (Middle Grade Fiction).

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

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

Refugee by Alan Gratz · 800L — Shares themes of family and empathy, both on the Arizona Grand Canyon Reader Award list (+11 more shared lists), and a close reading level (800L vs 790L).
The Fault in Our Stars by John Green · 850L — Both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+6 more shared lists), a close reading level (850L vs 790L), and the same era (2010s).
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas · 590L — Shares themes of family, both on the Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award list (+3 more shared lists), and a close reading level (590L vs 790L).
The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo · 800L — Shares themes of family, both on the Common Core State Standards (ELA) list, and a close reading level (800L vs 790L).
Divergent by Veronica Roth · grades 8–12 — Both on the California Young Reader Medal list (+5 more shared lists) and the same era (2010s).

Common questions

What books are similar to Wonder?: The 10 closest matches to Wonder by R.J. Palacio on ReadingList include The Wild Robot, Restart, Out of My Mind, Fish in a Tree, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Each is scored on shared themes (facial difference, kindness, and bullying), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 3–7), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.
Are books like Wonder reading-level appropriate?: Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 3–7), 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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