9 must-read realistic fiction books like Music for Tigers by Michelle Kadarusman

Cover of Music for Tigers by Michelle Kadarusman

Music for Tigers

By: Michelle Kadarusman

4.11

Format: 192 pages, Hardcover

Shipped halfway around the world to spend the summer with her mom’s eccentric Australian relatives,…

If you liked the realistic fiction plot in Music for Tigers by Michelle Kadarusman , here is a list of 9 books like this:

Cover of Hate That Cat (Jack, #2) by Sharon Creech

1. Hate That Cat (Jack, #2)

By: Sharon Creech

3.34

Format: 320 pages, Hardcover

Jack Room 204--Miss Stretchberry February 25 Today the fat black cat up in the tree by the bus st… read more

Similar categories in Sharon Creech's Hate That Cat (Jack, #2) book and Michelle Kadarusman's Music for Tigers

  • childrens
  • realistic fiction
  • middle grade
  • animals
  • fiction

2. Rump: The True Story of Rumpelstiltskin

By: Liesl Shurtliff

3.71

Format: 436 pages, Hardcover

In a magic kingdom where your name is your destiny, 12-year-old Rump is the butt of everyone's joke… read more

Similar categories in Liesl Shurtliff's Rump: The True Story of Rumpelstiltskin book and Michelle Kadarusman's Music for Tigers

Cover of Journey to the River Sea by Kevin Hawkes, Eva Ibbotson

3. Journey to the River Sea

By: Kevin Hawkes , Eva Ibbotson

4.20

Format: 304 pages, Paperback

Sent in 1910 to live with distant relatives who own a rubber plantation along the Amazon River, En… read more

Similar categories in Kevin Hawkes's Journey to the River Sea book and Michelle Kadarusman's Music for Tigers

  • middle grade
  • childrens
  • fiction
  • adventure
"They were steaming out of the station before Maia asked, 'Was it books in the trunk?' 'It was books, admitted Miss Minton. And Maia said, 'Good."

-Kevin Hawkes, Journey to the River Sea

4. Ice Wolves (Elementals, #1)

By: Amie Kaufman

4.21

Format: None pages, Hardcover

Everyone in Vallen knows that ice wolves and scorch dragons are sworn enemies who live deeply separ… read more

Similar categories in Amie Kaufman's Ice Wolves (Elementals, #1) book and Michelle Kadarusman's Music for Tigers

Cover of Swim Team by Johnnie Christmas

5. Swim Team

By: Johnnie Christmas

4.28

Format: 248 pages, Paperback

Bree can't wait for her first day at her new middle school, Enith Brigitha, home to the Mighty Mana… read more

Similar categories in Johnnie Christmas's Swim Team book and Michelle Kadarusman's Music for Tigers

  • childrens
  • realistic fiction
  • middle grade
  • fiction
  • juvenile
Cover of Willodeen by Katherine Applegate

6. Willodeen

By: Katherine Applegate

4.19

Format: 272 pages, Hardcover

The earth is old and we are not, and that is all you must remember . . . Eleven-year-old Willode… read more

Similar categories in Katherine Applegate's Willodeen book and Michelle Kadarusman's Music for Tigers

  • childrens
  • middle grade
  • animals
  • fiction
  • nature
  • juvenile
"Mostly I avoided the Faire, with its teeming crowds that made me feel like I was being smothered. So much noise! So much forced merrymaking! Often I would see children there, ones I recognized from m…"

-Katherine Applegate, Willodeen

Cover of Mexikid: A Graphic Memoir by Pedro Martín

7. Mexikid: A Graphic Memoir

By: Pedro Martín

4.27

Format: 320 pages, Hardcover

A poignant, hilarious, and unforgettable graphic memoir about a Mexican-American boy’s family and t… read more

Similar categories in Pedro Martín's Mexikid: A Graphic Memoir book and Michelle Kadarusman's Music for Tigers

  • middle grade
  • childrens
"It was like the driveway at Disneyland but with way more automatic weapons."

-Pedro Martín, Mexikid: A Graphic Memoir

"I like to say that my stories are 100% true 90% of the time. My memory and my heart like to play tricks on each other. The results are what makes my stories."

-Pedro Martín, Mexikid: A Graphic Memoir

Cover of Simon Sort of Says by Erin Bow

8. Simon Sort of Says

By: Erin Bow

4.31

Format: 320 pages, Hardcover

Simon O’Keeffe’s biggest claim to fame should be the time his dad accidentally gave a squirrel a ho… read more

Similar categories in Erin Bow's Simon Sort of Says book and Michelle Kadarusman's Music for Tigers

  • realistic fiction
  • middle grade
  • childrens
  • fiction
"Dad picks Denver [to get his rabies shots], and he's totally fine, but he's going to be away for three days. "Just like Jesus," Mom says. I can hear the phone say, "Isobel!"

-Erin Bow, Simon Sort of Says

"In the tabernacle did the [squirrel]--" "Eat the Host?" says Dad. "Yes he did." "And was it--" "Consecrated?" says Dad. "Yes it was." ... "What, uh, happened to the squirrel?" "That squirrel is now 3…"

-Erin Bow, Simon Sort of Says

"The dog- Todd?- looks up from its leaking beer, puffs a sigh, then crosses the room to head-butt the fridge door closed. "Ummm" I manage "Did you see he got a--" "It's okay," she says. "He only has o…"

-Erin Bow, Simon Sort of Says

Cover of The One and Only Ruby (The One and Only #3) by Katherine Applegate

9. The One and Only Ruby (The One and Only #3)

By: Katherine Applegate

4.28

Format: 210 pages, Hardcover

Ruby’s story picks up a few months after the events of The One and Only Bob. Now living in a wildli… read more

Similar categories in Katherine Applegate's The One and Only Ruby (The One and Only #3) book and Michelle Kadarusman's Music for Tigers

  • chapter books
  • childrens
  • middle grade
  • animals
  • fiction
  • juvenile
Cover of Plain Jane and the Mermaid by Vera Brosgol

10. Plain Jane and the Mermaid

By: Vera Brosgol

4.38

Format: 368 pages, Paperback

From Eisner Award winner Vera Brosgol comes an instant classic about courage, confidence, and inner… read more

Similar categories in Vera Brosgol's Plain Jane and the Mermaid book and Michelle Kadarusman's Music for Tigers

  • middle grade
  • childrens
  • fiction
  • adventure
Cover of Icon and Inferno (Stars and Smoke, #2) by Marie Lu

11. Icon and Inferno (Stars and Smoke, #2)

By: Marie Lu

3.94

Format: 320 pages, Hardcover

New sparks. Old flames. And a mission that's playing with fire. A year has passed since supersta… read more

Similar categories in Marie Lu's Icon and Inferno (Stars and Smoke, #2) book and Michelle Kadarusman's Music for Tigers

  • fiction
"Loyalty to a secret."

-Marie Lu, Icon and Inferno (Stars and Smoke, #2)

"Let me stay." "Keep me in your songs."

-Marie Lu, Icon and Inferno (Stars and Smoke, #2)

"Maybe love was not knowing and going ahead anyway."

-Marie Lu, Icon and Inferno (Stars and Smoke, #2)

"Grief is love. It's the price we pay for the gift of someone meaningful in our lives."

-Marie Lu, Icon and Inferno (Stars and Smoke, #2)

Cover of Thanks a Lot, Universe (Thanks a Lot, Universe, #1) by Chad Lucas

12. Thanks a Lot, Universe (Thanks a Lot, Universe, #1)

By: Chad Lucas

4.22

Format: 288 pages, Hardcover

A moving middle-grade debut for anyone who’s ever felt like they don’t belong. Brian has always … read more

Similar categories in Chad Lucas's Thanks a Lot, Universe (Thanks a Lot, Universe, #1) book and Michelle Kadarusman's Music for Tigers

  • realistic fiction
  • middle grade
  • fiction
"And mayonnaise is the whitest food."

-Chad Lucas, Thanks a Lot, Universe (Thanks a Lot, Universe, #1)

"...you can love someone an awful lot and hurt them all the same"

-Chad Lucas, Thanks a Lot, Universe (Thanks a Lot, Universe, #1)

"What? Oh.’ My cheeks went warm. ‘I did it without thinking..’ Mom smiled. ‘I know. You do that sometimes, until you get self-conscious and stop. But you don’t need to hide the things that make you ha…"

-Chad Lucas, Thanks a Lot, Universe (Thanks a Lot, Universe, #1)

Cover of Treasure in the Lake by Jason Pamment

13. Treasure in the Lake

By: Jason Pamment

3.81

Format: 208 pages, Hardcover

Grand adventures stories often begin where you least expect them… Iris knows this because she’s re… read more

Similar categories in Jason Pamment's Treasure in the Lake book and Michelle Kadarusman's Music for Tigers

  • middle grade
  • childrens
  • fiction
  • adventure
Cover of Music for Tigers by Michelle Kadarusman

14. Music for Tigers

By: Michelle Kadarusman

4.11

Format: 192 pages, Hardcover

Shipped halfway around the world to spend the summer with her mom’s eccentric Australian relatives,… read more

Similar categories in Michelle Kadarusman's Music for Tigers book and Michelle Kadarusman's Music for Tigers

  • chapter books
  • childrens
  • canada
  • adventure
  • realistic fiction
  • middle grade
  • animals
  • fiction
  • nature
  • juvenile
Cover of Almost Flying by Jake Maia Arlow

15. Almost Flying

By: Jake Maia Arlow

4.32

Format: 352 pages, Hardcover

In this unabashedly queer middle grade debut, a week-long amusement park road trip becomes a true r… read more

Similar categories in Jake Maia Arlow's Almost Flying book and Michelle Kadarusman's Music for Tigers

  • realistic fiction
  • middle grade
  • fiction
Cover of Gnome Is Where Your Heart Is by Casey Lyall

16. Gnome Is Where Your Heart Is

By: Casey Lyall

4.07

Format: 304 pages, Hardcover

Lemon Peabody is certain that aliens visited Grandpa Walt thirty years ago, but she's running out o… read more

Similar categories in Casey Lyall's Gnome Is Where Your Heart Is book and Michelle Kadarusman's Music for Tigers

  • childrens
  • adventure
  • middle grade
  • fiction
  • juvenile
Cover of That's Not My Name! by Anoosha Syed

17. That's Not My Name!

By: Anoosha Syed

4.38

Format: 40 pages, Kindle Edition

A debut picture book about loving your name, finding your voice, and standing up for yourself from … read more

Similar categories in Anoosha Syed's That's Not My Name! book and Michelle Kadarusman's Music for Tigers

  • realistic fiction
  • childrens
  • fiction
  • juvenile
Cover of Peanut Butter and Chaos: The Mythic Adventures of Samuel Templeton by Anita Daher

18. Peanut Butter and Chaos: The Mythic Adventures of Samuel Templeton

By: Anita Daher

3.11

Format: 176 pages, Paperback

Nominated for a 2023/24 Red Cedar Award Nominated for the 2024 MYRCA Sundogs! When twelve-year-old … read more

Similar categories in Anita Daher's Peanut Butter and Chaos: The Mythic Adventures of Samuel Templeton book and Michelle Kadarusman's Music for Tigers

  • middle grade
  • canada
Cover of Harvey Comes Home by Colleen Nelson

19. Harvey Comes Home

By: Colleen Nelson

4.22

Format: 224 pages, Hardcover

A dog’s world is a world of scents, of adventure. When a runaway West Highland Terrier named Harvey… read more

Similar categories in Colleen Nelson's Harvey Comes Home book and Michelle Kadarusman's Music for Tigers

  • childrens
  • canada
  • realistic fiction
  • middle grade
  • animals
  • fiction
  • juvenile
Cover of House Party by Justin A. Reynolds

20. House Party

By: Justin A. Reynolds

3.76

Format: 384 pages, Hardcover

Ten bestselling, critically acclaimed authors deliver a fresh novel of interconnected stories that … read more

Similar categories in Justin A. Reynolds's House Party book and Michelle Kadarusman's Music for Tigers

  • realistic fiction
  • fiction

16 must-read fiction books like Music for Tigers by Michelle Kadarusman

Transform Your Habits

Hate That Cat (Jack, #2)

Sharon Creech

3.34

Transform Your Habits

Journey to the River Sea

Kevin Hawkes , Eva Ibbotson

4.20

Transform Your Habits

Swim Team

Johnnie Christmas

4.28

Transform Your Habits

Willodeen

Katherine Applegate

4.19

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15 best-selling childrens books like Mexikid: A Graphic Memoir by Pedro Martín

Transform Your Habits

The Eyes and the Impossible

Dave Eggers

4.25

Transform Your Habits

Ferris

Kate DiCamillo

4.30

Transform Your Habits

The Mona Lisa Vanishes: A Legendary Painter, a Shocking Heist, and the Birth of a Global Celebrity

Nicholas Day

4.15

Transform Your Habits

The Lost Year

Katherine Marsh

4.50

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