What books are similar to Zen and the Art of Faking It?

The 10 closest matches to Zen and the Art of Faking It by Jordan Sonnenblick on ReadingList include The Strange Case of Origami Yoda, The Girl Who Could Fly, A Bad Case of Stripes, Eight Keys, and Jake and Lily. Each is scored on shared themes (asian americans, middle schools, and zen buddhism), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 2–8), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.

Are books like Zen and the Art of Faking It reading-level appropriate?

Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 2–8), 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 Zen and the Art of Faking It

If you liked Zen and the Art of Faking It, read The Strange Case of Origami Yoda, The Girl Who Could Fly, or A Bad Case of Stripes — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Closest match: The Strange Case of Origami Yoda by Tom Angleberger — shares middle schools

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Looking for books like Zen and the Art of Faking It by Jordan Sonnenblick (Realistic Fiction · grades 2–8)? It’s most often read for its themes of asian americans, middle schools, and zen buddhism. 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 2–8 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 Strange Case of Origami Yodagrades 4–6: Shares themes of middle schools, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
The Girl Who Could Flygrades 4–6: Shares themes of individuality, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–6). Amazon → books like this →
A Bad Case of Stripesgrades 2–8: Shares themes of individuality, both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, and overlapping grades (2–8). Amazon → books like this →
Eight Keysgrades 4–6: Shares themes of middle schools, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–6). Amazon → books like this →
Jake and Lilygrades 3–6: Shares themes of individuality, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (3–6). Amazon → books like this →
The Perfect Scoregrades 3–8: Shares themes of middle schools, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (3–8). Amazon → books like this →
The Dunderheadsgrades 3–5: Shares themes of individuality and overlapping grades (3–5). Amazon → books like this →
After Ever Aftergrades 5–8: Is by Jordan Sonnenblick, the same author and overlapping grades (5–8). Amazon → books like this →
A Wrinkle in Time740L: Shares themes of individuality and overlapping grades (5–7). Amazon → books like this →
All's Faire in Middle Schoolgrades 4–8: Shares themes of middle schools and overlapping grades (4–8). Amazon → books like this →

Books like Zen and the Art of Faking It for younger readers (K–2)

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

Ida B. and Her Plans to Maximize Fun, Avoid Disaster, and (Possibly) Save the World by Katherine Hannigan · grades 2–8 — Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (2–8).
Say What? by Margaret Peterson Haddix · grades 2–8 — Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (2–8).
Star in the Storm by Joan Hiatt Harlow · grades 2–8 — Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (2–8).
Togo by Robert J. Blake · grades 2–8 — Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (2–8).
When the Wolves Returned by Dorothy Hinshaw Patent · grades 2–8 — Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (2–8).

Books like Zen and the Art of Faking It for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

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

Ida B. and Her Plans to Maximize Fun, Avoid Disaster, and (Possibly) Save the World by Katherine Hannigan · grades 2–8 — Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (2–8).
Loser by Jerry Spinelli · grades 4–6 — Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–6).
Rules by Cynthia Lord · grades 4–7 — Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–7).
Say What? by Margaret Peterson Haddix · grades 2–8 — Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (2–8).
Star in the Storm by Joan Hiatt Harlow · grades 2–8 — Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (2–8).

Books like Zen and the Art of Faking It for middle school (grades 6–8)

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

Ida B. and Her Plans to Maximize Fun, Avoid Disaster, and (Possibly) Save the World by Katherine Hannigan · grades 2–8 — Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (2–8).
Loser by Jerry Spinelli · grades 4–6 — Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–6).
Rules by Cynthia Lord · grades 4–7 — Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–7).
Say What? by Margaret Peterson Haddix · grades 2–8 — Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (2–8).
Star in the Storm by Joan Hiatt Harlow · grades 2–8 — Both on the Great Lakes Great Books Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (2–8).

Books like Zen and the Art of Faking It for high school & teens (grades 9–12)

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

Ties That Bind, Ties That Break by Lensey Namioka · grades 9–12 — Shares themes of individuality and same genre (Realistic Fiction).
A Doll's House by Henrik Ibsen · grades 11–12 — Shares themes of individuality.
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley · 870L — Shares themes of individuality.

Common questions

What books are similar to Zen and the Art of Faking It?: The 10 closest matches to Zen and the Art of Faking It by Jordan Sonnenblick on ReadingList include The Strange Case of Origami Yoda, The Girl Who Could Fly, A Bad Case of Stripes, Eight Keys, and Jake and Lily. Each is scored on shared themes (asian americans, middle schools, and zen buddhism), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 2–8), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.
Are books like Zen and the Art of Faking It reading-level appropriate?: Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 2–8), 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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