Recommendations based on A Long Walk to Water: Based on a True Storyby Linda Sue Park

* statistically, based on millions of data-points provided by fellow humans

  1. Inside Out & Back Again

    by Thanhha Lai
    A young girl and her family flee Vietnam, adapting to a new life in America.

    Inside Out and Back Again is a story about a young girl named Kim Hà and her family, consisting of her Mother and three brothers, being forced to move to the United States because the Vietnam War had ... (Wikipedia)

  2. Out of My Mind

    by Sharon M. Draper
    A young girl with cerebral palsy struggles to overcome obstacles and prove her ability.

    Melody Brooks is a girl who was born with cerebral palsy . Also, who is ten years old. Her parents have done everything they can to help her live a normal life, but life is often frustrating for ... (Wikipedia)

  3. Orphan Train

    by Christina Baker Kline
    A story of two women's intertwined lives, spanning generations and crossing continents.

    The #1 New York Times Bestseller “A lovely novel about the search for family that also happens to illuminate a fascinating and forgotten chapter of America’s history. Beautiful.”—Ann Packer Moving ... (Barnes & Noble)

  4. The One and Only Ivan

    by Katherine Applegate
    A gorilla named Ivan, who lives in a mall, finds hope and freedom through his art and the help of his friends.

    The story is placed at the Exit 8 Big Top Mall by the Video Arcade. Ivan, the gorilla, has lived in captivity at the Big Top Mall for 9,855 days by his own tally. , He lives in his domain, and is ... (Wikipedia)

  5. Sisters

    by Raina Telgemeier
    A graphic novel about the ups and downs of sisterhood, as two siblings navigate family, friendship, and growing up together.

    Three weeks. Two sisters. One car. A True Story Raina can’t wait to be a big sister. But once Amara is born, things aren’t quite how she expected them to be. Amara is cute, but she’s also a cranky, ... (Goodreads)

  6. The Tiger Rising

    by Kate DiCamillo
    A young boy discovers a caged tiger in the woods and befriends a girl who helps him confront his grief.

    The National Book Award finalist from the best-selling author of, Because of Winn-Dixie,—now in paperback Walking through the misty Florida woods one morning, twelve-year-old Rob Horton is stunned to ... (Goodreads)

  7. Between Shades of Gray

    by Ruta Sepetys
    A young girl's story of survival and resilience in the face of oppression during World War II.

    Lina is just like any other fifteen-year-old Lithuanian girl in 1941. She paints, she draws, she gets crushes on boys. Until one night when Soviet officers barge into her home, tearing her family ... (Goodreads)

  8. The Breadwinner

    by Deborah Ellis
    A young girl in Afghanistan must take on the mantle of breadwinner to protect her family.

    Parvana is an 11-year-old girl who lives in Kabul , Afghanistan with her mother Fatima, her father, her older sister Nooria, and two younger siblings, Maryam and Ali. Taliban soldiers enter her house ... (Wikipedia)

  9. Drama

    by Raina Telgemeier
    A young girl discovers her passion for theatre while navigating her own personal journey.

    PLACES, EVERYONE! Callie loves theater. And while she would totally try out for her middle school's production of Moon Over Mississippi , she can't really sing. Instead she's the set designer for the ... (Goodreads)

  10. Counting by 7s

    by Holly Goldberg Sloan
    A story of resilience and hope, as an outsider learns to find her place in the world.

    Willow Chance is a twelve-year-old genius, obsessed with nature and diagnosing medical conditions, who finds it comforting to count by 7s. It has never been easy for her to connect with anyone other ... (Goodreads)

  11. Hatchet

    by Gary Paulsen
    A boy must learn to survive in the wilderness after a plane crash leaves him stranded.

    Brian Robeson is a thirteen-year-old son of divorced parents. As he travels from Hampton, New York on a single engine Cessna bush plane to visit his father in the oil fields in Northern Canada for ... (Wikipedia)

  12. A Single Shard

    by Linda Sue Park
    A young orphan boy in 12th century Korea dreams of becoming a potter and sets out on a journey to prove himself.

    Tree-ear is an orphan who lives under a bridge with Crane-man, a physically disabled man who took him in when Tree-ear was only a small child. Tree-ear is fascinated with the nearby potters in his ... (Wikipedia)

  13. The Crossover

    by Kwame Alexander
    Two brothers explore the joys and struggles of adolescence through the power of basketball.

    New York Times, bestseller ∙ Newbery Medal Winner ∙, Coretta Scott King Honor Award ∙,2015 YALSA 2015 Top Ten Best Fiction for Young Adults,∙, 2015 YALSA Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers ... (Barnes & Noble)

  14. Countdown

    by Deborah Wiles
    Set in the 1960s, a young girl navigates the Cuban Missile Crisis and her own family's struggles.

    The story of a formative year in 12-year-old Franny Chapman's life, and the life of a nation facing the threat of nuclear war. Franny Chapman just wants some peace. But that's hard to get when her ... (Goodreads)

  15. Owl Moon

    by Jane Yolen
    A magical night-time adventure as a father and daughter search for an owl.

    The story deals with a father who takes his child owling for the first time on a cold summer night. Along their way, they encounter a great horned owl . While the first-person text does not specify ... (Wikipedia)

  16. Fudge-a-Mania

    by Judy Blume
    A humorous take on family dynamics as siblings battle for their parents' attention.

    Peter Hatcher is horrified to learn of his family's plans to spend summer in a vacation home alongside the Tubmans, the family of his archrival, Sheila Tubman, located in Southwest Harbor, Maine . On ... (Wikipedia)

  17. Smile

    by Raina Telgemeier
    A young girl navigates the challenges of middle school and braces, overcoming obstacles with the help of her friends.

    For fans both new and old, Smile is now available with fifteen pages of never-before-seen content exclusively at B&N. Raina just wants to be a normal sixth grader. But one night after Girl Scouts she ... (Barnes & Noble)

  18. A Dog's Purpose

    by W. Bruce Cameron
    A dog's journey to discovering its true purpose, through multiple lifetimes and owners.

    The narrator first starts out as a feral Beagle / German Shepherd / terrier mix puppy. A few weeks later, after being nursed by their mother, a feral as well, the dog and his siblings Fast, Sister, ... (Wikipedia)

  19. The City of Ember

    by Jeanne DuPrau
    A city on the brink of destruction, two young people race against time to unlock its secrets.

    As the book starts off, a coalition of architects, scientists, and doctors known as "The Builders" have built Ember, an isolated, underground city with enough supplies for its inhabitants to survive ... (Wikipedia)

  20. The Art of Racing in the Rain

    by Garth Stein
    An uplifting story of a race car driver and the bond between humans and animals.

    Enzo knows he is different from other dogs: a philosopher with a nearly human soul (and an obsession with opposable thumbs), he has educated himself by watching television extensively, and by ... (Goodreads)

  21. Refugee

    by Alan Gratz
    Three children, three different times, all with a common goal of finding refuge.

    A tour de force from acclaimed author Alan Gratz (,Prisoner B-3087,), this timely — and timeless — novel tells the powerful story of three different children seeking refuge. A, New York Times, ... (Barnes & Noble)

  22. How to Steal a Dog

    by Barbara O'Connor
    A young girl and her brother hatch a plan to steal a dog in order to get the reward money to help their homeless family.

    Don't miss Barbara O'Connor's other middle-grade work—like, Wish; Wonderland; Greetings from Nowhere; Fame and Glory in Freedom, Georgia; The Fantastic Secret of Owen Jester;, and more! Half of me ... (Barnes & Noble)

  23. The Westing Game

    by Ellen Raskin
    A mysterious game of wit and skill, with a fortune as the prize.

    BE CLASSIC with, The Westing Game, introduced by, New York Times, bestselling author Mac Barnett. A highly inventive mystery begins when sixteen unlikely people gather for the reading of the very ... (Barnes & Noble)

  24. Sunny Side Up

    by Jennifer L. Holm
    Sunny spends the summer of 1976 with her grandfather in Florida, uncovering family secrets and learning about life.

    When is a summer vacation not really a summer vacation? Sunny Lewin has been packed off to Florida to live with her grandfather for the summer. At first she thought Florida might be fun – it is the ... (Goodreads)

  25. Fish in a Tree

    by Lynda Mullaly Hunt
    A young girl discovers her own unique talents with the help of a supportive teacher.

    "Fans of R.J. Palacio’s, Wonder, will appreciate this feel-good story of friendship and unconventional smarts.” —,Kirkus Reviews, Ally has been smart enough to fool a lot of smart people. Every time ... (Barnes & Noble)

  26. The Sign of the Beaver

    by Elizabeth George Speare
    A young boy left alone in the wilderness befriends a Native American and learns survival skills.

    The Sign of the Beaver tells the story of 13-year-old Matt James Hallowell, an 18th-century American settler. He and his father build a log cabin in the wilderness of Maine, then Matt is left alone ... (Wikipedia)

  27. Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet

    by Jamie Ford
    A touching story of the intersection of love, family, and culture during World War II.

    Henry Lee, the son of Chinese parents in Seattle , Washington, is the only Asian child at his elementary school. His father makes him wear an "I Am Chinese" button so he will not be mistaken for a ... (Wikipedia)

  28. The Orphan Keeper

    by Camron Wright
    A young boy is kidnapped from his family in India and raised in the US. Years later, he seeks to reconnect with his past.

    Based on a remarkable true story Seven-year-old Chellamuthu’s life—and his destiny—is forever changed when he is kidnapped from his village in Southern India and sold to the Lincoln Home for Homeless ... (Barnes & Noble)

  29. Echo

    by Pam Muñoz Ryan
    A magical story of courage, hope and friendship, connecting three different generations.

    The framing story is set in Germany circa 1889; , while playing hide-and-seek with his friends, Otto becomes absorbed in a book he had purchased from a Gypsy entitled The Thirteenth Harmonica of Otto ... (Wikipedia)

  30. Okay for Now

    by Gary D. Schmidt
    A young boy struggles to find his place in a new town, but with the help of a kind librarian and John James Audubon's illustrations, he discovers his own talents and strengths.

    Douglas "Doug" Swieteck is a fourteen-year-old boy living somewhere on Long Island in 1968 during the Vietnam War . After Doug's dad is fired for mouthing off to his boss, the Swietecks move to the ... (Wikipedia)