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If you loved
Books like Buddha boy
A quiet but emotionally resonant exploration of high school cruelty, artistic expression, and the difficult choices required to find one's moral center. These 12 books are the closest matches in mood, pace and themes, with what each one shares with Buddha boy.
- contemplative
- tense
- hopeful
- grounded
- 01
The blue mirror
Kathe Koja · 2004
A haunting, lyrical descent into the intoxicating and dangerous gravity of a toxic first love.
- 02
The Invisible Boy
Trudy Ludwig
A tender, quiet exploration of what it feels like to be overlooked, and the transformative magic of a single act of inclusion.
- 03
Crow Boy
Tarō Yashima
A quiet, deeply moving tribute to the misunderstood outsider and the transformative power of being truly seen.
- 04
American Born Chinese
Gene Luen Yang
A clever, intertwining graphic journey through the awkwardness of adolescence, the weight of heritage, and the struggle to accept who you are.
- 05
The Boy Who Lost His Face
Louis Sachar
A quirky, empathetic exploration of middle school awkwardness, where a literal curse forces a boy to figure out who he actually wants to be.
- 06
Shattering Glass
Gail Giles · 2002
A chilling, dread-soaked descent into the toxic, manipulative underbelly of high school popularity where a cruel social experiment spirals into inevitable tragedy.
- 07
The janitor's boy
Andrew Clements
An earnest, grounded exploration of schoolyard embarrassment and the heavy weight of misdirected anger between a father and son.
- 08
Name Jar
Yangsook Choi · 2001
A tender and affirming exploration of holding onto who you are when everything around you is new.
- 09
The Buddha in the attic
Julie Otsuka
A hypnotic, choral incantation that gives voice to a generation of women whose lives were quietly erased by history.
- 10
Mr. Lincoln's way
Patricia Polacco · 2001
A warm, school-based tale that explores how a compassionate mentor can use a child's hidden passions to dismantle prejudice.
- 11
The Bully
Paul Langan
A tense, highly relatable high school drama about finding the courage to stand your ground when you feel completely alone.
- 12
Each kindness
Jacqueline Woodson
A quiet, lingering ache of a story that explores the heavy ripple effect of the chances we miss to be good to one another.
