If You Liked This Book:

By EDITH MAUCH

Have you ever finished a book that you really love and wished you could read a thousand other books just like it? If so, this article is for you. Below are ten books and at least one suggestion for which book you might also like.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling

The obvious choice after this would be Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, but if you are like me and you have read all the Harry Potter books at least once, you are probably looking for something else.

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs: Although this is a book for younger children, a lot of its themes tackle complicated concepts. I found that while reading the series, the books had a very similar feel to the Harry Potter series. The books tell the store of a mysterious island off the coast of Wales containing an abandoned orphanage that has been turned into a school. The main character, Jacob soon discovers that the children who attend this school are anything but ordinary. In fact, they could be dangerous.

Upside Down Magic by Sarah Mylnowsky, Lauren Myracle, and Emily Jenkin: Although this is again a book for younger children (it was one of my favorite books when I was in elementary school), in my opinion it is very well written and a book that I think some Harry Potter fans would enjoy. It is about a girl named Nory with unique magic who flunks out of her father’s magic school, where her abilities do not quite fit in. After being forced to attend public school, Nory discovers a group of students whose magic is not so different at all from her own.

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte:

The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte

Although The Tenant of Wildfell Hall has quite a different premise to Jane Eyre, if you enjoy Charlotte Bronte’s writing, you will likely also enjoy Anne Bronte’s writing as it is quite similar in a lot of ways. In addition, both books are an excellent insight into 19th Century feminism in novels. Told largely through diary entries and letters, this book tells the story of the mysterious Helen Graham and her young son, whose potentially scandalous background has become the interest of many of the tenants of Wildfell Hall. It is an especially good book for autumn and winter, as it has a very eerie and desolate tone to it that is accentuated through Anne Bronte’s magnificent ability to craft a clever and mysterious plot.

Emily of New Moon by L.M Montgomery

Although also not entirely similar in plot to Jane Eyre, Emily of New Moon (the first book in the Emily series) is another book that has a similar tone and writing style to Jane Eyre and the plot tells stories with similar themes to Jane Eyre. When Emily Starr’s father dies, Emily becomes an orphan, taken in by her mother’s horrible relatives. She soon finds ways to cope with her strange new home. Eventually, the series, much like Jane Eyre, follows Emily through her childhood and eventually into the beginning of her career as a young writer.

The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck

The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway

In a lot of ways Hemingway’s writing style is both very similar to and completely unique in comparison to Steinbeck’s, although I think that one of the biggest similarities between their writing both of their writing deals with issues and stories that are so deeply human and filled with emotion. The Old Man and the Sea is a short classic, but filled with so much wonderful storytelling. It tells the story of a Cuban fisherman in the Gulf Stream. Perhaps one of the most interesting themes that this book deals with is the deeply human experience of aging and what aging teaches us. How we change, what we learn, how we view the world. Also, if you enjoyed Moby Dick, you will likely also really enjoy this book, as both books deal with a similar theme.

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain

Again, this book deals with human emotion and experience in such an interesting way. I find myself finding many of the stories in the book deeply relatable, but I am often not quite sure why, as the stories tell such a vastly different story from my life. In my opinion, this is the genius of writers like Steinbeck, Hemingway, and Twain. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn follows a boy living in the 19th Century Mississippi River town.

Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistlestop Café by Fannie Flagg

Again, although this book is so different from anything I have ever experienced in my own life, I cannot help but relate to it and feel some sort of connection to it, although I cannot entirely put my finger on exactly what it is that gives me such a connection to this book. At any rate, it is a fantastic story that I have both laughed out loud and cried over- sometimes both at the same time. It tells the story of two vastly different girls- one outgoing and arguably wild at times and the other very much prim and proper- who become life-long friends in an all-but idyllic situation, despite the backdrop of the seemingly idyllic town of Whistlestop.

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

Stamped From the Beginning by Ibram X. Kendi

In my opinion, this book in addition to The Hate U Give, is one of the single most important books ever written. Mr. Kendi is the bravest, most masterful author I have ever read and his immense amount of research and passion comes through the pages of this book. When I read this book, it opened my eyes to so many incredibly important issues that we should all be very aware of, but unfortunately, too few people are aware of such important issues. If you have never read this book before, I would strongly urge you to do so, along with Mr. Kendi’s other incredible books.

The Black Flamingo by Dean Atta

This book tells an incredibly important story of a young man coming to terms with his identity as a mixed-race gay teenager. The book tackles other issues, including, but not limited to, toxic masculinity and being a mixed-race member of the LGBTQIAA+ Community in the United Kingdom and the unique struggles that this presents. My favorite quote from the book is “Your ignorance may be innocent, but the racism is real”. Again, I urge you to read this book, as I believe it is incredibly important and reading it opened my eyes to so many issues that I was ignorant to.

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

Five Feet Apart by Rachel Lippincott, Mikki Daughtry, and Tobias Iaconis

In my opinion, it is important to write about a huge issue (in my opinion) with both The Fault in Our Stars and Five Feet Apart (and many other young adult books that tackle chronic illness, as there are hundreds of these). Both The Fault in Our Stars and Five Feet Apart (and countless other books) hugely romanticize the life of someone with a chronic illness. In my opinion, as someone who is fortunate enough to not personally suffer from a chronic illness, but knows many people personally who do, both books do not accurately summarize what it like to live with a chronic illness. In fact, they frequently do the opposite. They glamorize and romanticize it. However, with this being said, I think as long as you keep this extremely important idea in mind, both of these books can be good sounding boards for actual research and education on chronic illnesses, which I think is important for every person to do. Even though these are works of fiction intended to be entertaining, that still does not mean that research cannot be done on the part of the reader. After reading Five Feet Apart, I wanted to properly educate myself on Cystic Fibrosis by reading dozens of scholarly articles, research studies, and first-hand accounts by people suffering from Cystic Fibrosis. I would highly recommend you do the same, because in my opinion, books like Five Feet Apart do not give you anywhere near the amount of insight and real research you need to even begin to understand Cystic Fibrosis, as it is a complex and devastating disease that can only be fully understood by those suffering with it. However, in my opinion, it is still incredibly important to be educated and, in my opinion, books like Five Feet Apart can be a good start, with the understanding that not all information in the book will be accurate and that the book does glamorize and romanticize Cystic Fibrosis to a huge extent.

My Sister’s Keeper by Jodi Picoult

This book tells the story of two sisters who have both spent their entire lives in and out of hospitals, but each for a vastly different reason. One sister is fighting Leukemia. The other sister undergoes countless surgeries and transfusions to help her sister, since the sisters have bone marrow matches. The book examines the role of a good parent, a good sister, and an overall good person, especially in the face of terrible adversities, like cancer and chronic illness. Again, it is important to keep in mind that this book does have instances of glamorization of cancer and chronic illness that should be kept in mind as you read the book, and as for all books like this one, I would highly encourage you to do your own research on the topics explored in this book before, after, or during reading it.