Books like Matilda

Loved Matilda by Roald Dahl? Here are 8 books with the same pull, and why each one fits.

8 books

Show only

1The Bad Beginning
The Bad Beginning
Lemony Snicket
Features resourceful children outsmarting a cruel, cartoonishly villainous adult guardian.
Books like it →
Buy on Amazon
2Harriet the Spy
Harriet the Spy
Louise Fitzhugh
Centers on an observant, intellectually independent young girl navigating school and difficult peers.
Buy on Amazon
3Pippi Longstocking
Pippi Longstocking
Astrid Lindgren
Presents an extraordinarily capable girl who easily overturns adult authority and social conventions.
Buy on Amazon
4The Secret Garden
The Secret Garden
Frances Hodgson Burnett
Explores how neglected children find autonomy, renewal, and companionship outside their families.
Books like it →
Buy on Amazon
5Coraline
Coraline
Neil Gaiman
Follows a clever young girl who uses her wits to outmaneuver a deceptive and terrifying adult figure.
Books like it →
Buy on Amazon
6The Mysterious Benedict Society (The Mysterious Benedict Soc
The Mysterious Benedict Society (The Mysterious Benedict Society #1)
Trenton Lee Stewart
Focuses on exceptionally bright children who use logic, reading, and problem-solving to stop a villain.
Buy on Amazon
7Maniac Magee
Maniac Magee
Jerry Spinelli
Depicts a gifted child with extraordinary abilities confronting prejudice and finding a chosen family.
Buy on Amazon
8Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Nimh
Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Nimh
Robert C. O'Brien
Features intelligent, resourceful protagonists solving problems through literacy, planning, and teamwork.
Buy on Amazon

More book lists