75 books like The Monster in the Backpack

Cece Bell is one of the funniest, most fearless writers in town, and I never know what she’s going to do next. This book features Bell’s trademark absurd humor and endearing characters.

Rabbit lives by her to-do list, and Robot tends to go off-script, asking for nuts and bolts on pizza or running out of batteries during a game called Go Fish. (Hey, who hasn’t?) But for me, Rabbit’s missing remote gets the biggest laugh as Bell works it into a visual joke that’s a hoot to be in on.

Worms are slimy and wiggly, and you can’t tell their tops from their bottoms! *shudder* This is one of those books I want to immediately read at storytime because I know the room will erupt in giggles.

From the idea of a fierce tiger being terrified of worms to the physical humor to the hilarious dialogue, this book is full of laugh-out-loud moments. I also love how the ending flips this story on its head … or is it its tail!? 

Is there such a thing as too silly in children’s books? No way, I say! This book is book 6 in the side-splitting A Jack Book series. It’s super silly and a little weird—just the way I like my books.

The mischievous Jack has a habit of swiping snacks and ladies' lipsticks (great for writing on walls). So when Jack figures out how to clone himself, watch out! This book is a storytime hit with dry humor and escalating chaos… until the super silly and a little weird ending.

Poor Nat the Cat just wants to take a nap, but the intrusive narrator won’t let him. The incongruity of the narrator’s words and Nat’s actions pack a comedic punch on every page, just as the brilliant See the Cat and See the Dog books do.

Lerner managed to create this gem with few words and sparse illustrations, which is incredibly difficult. And good news—the Nat the Cat books are now a series. 

Naomi Novak could write anything, and I would read it, but I am a sucker for dark academia.

Well, this one takes the cake with a school that is actively trying to kill the students. While this book is pretty dark in parts, it was the instances of light that really kept me reading the entire series.

There were many times I wasn’t sure where it would lead, but I was never disappointed by what I discovered.

It took me months to pick up Carry On after it initially caught my eye on the bookshelf. It was everything I could have wanted.

It is a less problematic Harry Potter, if Harry and Draco ended up getting together. It shows a really authentic representation of unrequited queer love and recognizing one’s own queer identity. It is character-driven, but also full of fun magic adventure. I love a book that knows how to give you exactly what you want.

Ember is a very small boy, alone in a city and very overlooked.

He dreams of making friends and of going to school and fitting in. When he encounters a giant sea turtle named Lua who tells him of the island of Lost Creatures, which is where he went to school when he was small.

Lua and Ember travel together across the Ocean to find the school in some incredibly beautiful passages in the middle of the book. Their journey and his struggle to fit in at his new school make for an incredible middle grade graphic novel that really speaks to all children.

The art is just stunning and it’s an easy-to-follow and beautiful story. I’ve enjoyed this writer/artist’s other graphic novels and this new one doesn’t disappoint!

A 90s, queer, coming-of-age story mixed with cosmic horror, I would have read this in a single sitting if I didn’t have to get off the bus. The protagonist, Heath, is an artistic teen who recreates horror movie posters during his habitual trips to the local video store and is slowly starting to realize he is gay, something discouraged by his fellow students at his Catholic school.

I loved the lack of explanation about the supernatural elements. Was the monster all in Heath’s head? I love the ambiguity, but I also love it as a metaphor. I really enjoyed the emotional journey, which felt very autobiographical. My favorite thing is the video store itself. I’m 33, so this brought back fond memories of visiting the video store with my parents.

The Tekken fighting game franchise has always been an inspiration to me. When this comic book series came out, I was beyond thrilled, and it definitely didn’t disappoint. Tekken is a series about a family battle between a son, father, and grandfather, all possessing a form of cursed bloodline and the desire for power and to become the best there is within a fighting tournament. This book and its visuals helped me finalize some of the character aspects within my first novel and helped me picture fight scenes being more powerful and ferocious. I recommend this book and its series to any who likes fantasy-like fights and fighting games/books.

Translated from Korean, Solo Leveling is the story of a world where mysterious portals have opened and lead into caves full of nightmarish creatures. To combat these “Dungeons”, humans have harnessed magic in order to awaken what are called Hunters – people who are stronger, faster, and more powerful than the average person. One of these Hunters is named Jinwoo Sung, known across Korea as the weakest hunter to have awakened. Barely stronger than a normal human, he’s nearly died hundreds of times but keeps fighting in order to support his sister and sick mother. After a sudden encounter with a strange Dungeon, he’s gained the ability to Level Up, finally giving him the chance to prove that he’s not just some weakling who needs to be protected.

This story resonates with me because you can’t help but be envious of a power like this. The more the MC fights,… show more.