Read-alikes
Books Like Percy Jackson
Myths, jokes and a kid who finds out they are more than they thought.
Updated September 2026 · By Sawyer V.
The short version
Percy Jackson readers loved the myths, the funny narrator or the quest. The Red Pyramid and Tristan Strong swap the Greek gods for Egyptian and African American ones, Artemis Fowl and Nevermoor offer a hidden magical world, and The Hobbit and The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe are the classic quests.
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How we picked
Each pick names which element it matches: the mythology, the voice or the adventure. We note where a pick is older or harder going than Percy Jackson. We have not read all eight.
What we do on every list: read the publisher’s own description rather than a summary of it, check print length and first publication year against library catalog data (last refreshed September 11, 2026), confirm the book is still sold in the format we suggest, and write the match line before the blurb. What we do not do is claim to have read every book here cover to cover. The full method is published, and it is written so anyone can check it.
The short answer
Who each book is for, at a glance. Select a row for the full write-up.
| # | Book | Give this if | Where to buy |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  The Red PyramidRick Riordan · 533 pagesSame author, Egyptian myths | they want more Rick Riordan | |
| 2 |  Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the SkyKwame Mbalia · 496 pagesMatches the mythology | they loved gods and heroes walking into modern life | |
| 3 |  Artemis FowlEoin Colfer · 288 pagesMatches the funny voice | they loved the jokes as much as the action | |
| 4 |  NevermoorJessica Townsend · 512 pagesMatches the hidden world | they want a magical world to move into | |
| 5 |  HolesLouis Sachar · 240 pagesMatches the humor and the twists | they like a mystery with their adventure | |
| 6 |  The HobbitJ. R. R. Tolkien · 310 pagesThe classic quest | they want a quest with a map | |
| 7 |  The Lion, the Witch and the WardrobeC. S. Lewis · 186 pagesThe classic portal | they loved ordinary kids finding a secret world | |
| 8 |  A Wrinkle in TimeMadeleine L'Engle · 212 pagesThe science-fantasy classic | they want a smart heroine and a cosmic quest |
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Eight, by which element they match
1. Same author, Egyptian myths
The Red Pyramid
Rick Riordan
Give this ifthey want more Rick Riordan
Two siblings discover that their family descends from the magicians of ancient Egypt, and set out to stop the god Set. The same author, the same humor, a new mythology.
- Print length
- 533 pages
- First published
- 2010
- Formats
- print, Kindle and audio where the publisher offers them
2. Matches the mythology
Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky
Kwame Mbalia
Give this ifthey loved gods and heroes walking into modern life
A seventh-grader grieving his best friend punches a hole into a world where African American folk heroes and West African gods are at war. Published under Rick Riordan's own imprint, with the same humor and heart.
- Print length
- 496 pages
- First published
- 2019
- Formats
- print, Kindle and audio where the publisher offers them
3. Matches the funny voice
Artemis Fowl
Eoin Colfer
Give this ifthey loved the jokes as much as the action
A twelve-year-old criminal mastermind kidnaps a fairy to hold for ransom, and the fairy police fight back. Clever, fast and very funny, with an antihero instead of a hero.
- Print length
- 288 pages
- Formats
- print, Kindle and audio where the publisher offers them
4. Matches the hidden world
Nevermoor
Jessica Townsend
Give this ifthey want a magical world to move into
A girl cursed to die on her eleventh birthday is whisked away to a magical city, where she must compete to join its most exclusive society. Warm, inventive and the start of a series.
- Print length
- 512 pages
- First published
- 2017
- Formats
- print, Kindle and audio where the publisher offers them
5. Matches the humor and the twists
Holes
Louis Sachar
Give this ifthey like a mystery with their adventure
A boy wrongly sent to a desert detention camp, where the inmates dig holes all day, uncovers a family curse and a buried secret. Funny, clever and tightly plotted, for a reader who wants the jokes without the gods.
- Print length
- 240 pages
- First published
- 1988
- Formats
- print, Kindle and audio where the publisher offers them
6. The classic quest
The Hobbit
J. R. R. Tolkien
Give this ifthey want a quest with a map
A comfortable hobbit is swept off on a quest with thirteen dwarves and a wizard to win back a dragon's treasure. The adventure that shaped the whole shelf.
One caveat: Older prose; good for reading aloud.
- Print length
- 310 pages
- First published
- 1937
- Formats
- print, Kindle and audio where the publisher offers them
7. The classic portal
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
C. S. Lewis
Give this ifthey loved ordinary kids finding a secret world
Four siblings sent to the countryside during the war step through a wardrobe into Narnia, a land held in endless winter by a witch. Short, and lovely to read aloud.
- Print length
- 186 pages
- First published
- 1950
- Formats
- print, Kindle and audio where the publisher offers them
8. The science-fantasy classic
A Wrinkle in Time
Madeleine L'Engle
Give this ifthey want a smart heroine and a cosmic quest
A girl, her little brother and a friend travel across the universe to rescue her missing scientist father. A classic about courage and love, with more science than myth.
- Print length
- 212 pages
- First published
- 1962
- Formats
- print, Kindle and audio where the publisher offers them
Myths, jokes or the quest
Percy Jackson works because it takes ancient myths seriously and its hero not seriously at all. Young readers usually loved one of three things.
- The myths: The Red Pyramid or Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky.
- The voice: Artemis Fowl or Holes.
- The quest: The Hobbit or Nevermoor.
Where this fits
Books like Harry Potter covers the school-of-magic side of this shelf, myth retellings suits an older reader who wants the gods for grown-ups, and books for kids and books for tweens sort gifts by age. Middle-grade fantasy is also a family favorite in the car — see family road-trip audiobooks — and the subscription panel on this page explains who audio suits.
Two ways to read this list for less
If several books here appeal, a subscription usually beats buying them one at a time — but only for the right kind of reader. Here is who each one actually suits.
Audible Premium Plus
For anyone whose hands are busy
Driving, walking, cooking, cleaning. It converts hours that were never available for reading, which is a bigger effect than any discount. Books bought with a credit stay yours after you cancel — titles from the included catalog do not, and confusing the two is the most common complaint about the service.
See Audible plans and current pricingHow Audible actually works — credits, gifting and what happens when you cancel.
Kindle Unlimited
For fast readers who browse
It pays off from about three ebooks a month, in the genres the catalog covers well — romance, romantasy, cozy mystery, thriller, progression fantasy. It does not pay off if you are waiting on a specific new hardcover, because those are usually not included. Everything is borrowed, not owned.
See Kindle Unlimited terms and pricingIs Kindle Unlimited worth it? — the arithmetic, done on your own reading.
#ad — how we are funded. We print no subscription prices anywhere on this site, because they change and a stale figure sends you to a checkout expecting something that is not there. And if you read in silence in a chair, neither of these is for you — buy the book, or borrow it from your library.
What we would skip
Riordan's later series out of order
Rick Riordan's world continues in The Heroes of Olympus and The Trials of Apollo, and both build on the first five Percy Jackson books. A reader who has not finished those will meet spoilers. Check where they are before buying a later series.
Questions people ask
What should my child read after Percy Jackson?
The Red Pyramid for more Rick Riordan, or Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky for a new mythology with the same humor.
What order do the Rick Riordan books go in?
Start with the five Percy Jackson books, then The Heroes of Olympus. The Kane Chronicles, which begin with The Red Pyramid, can be read at any point.
Are there books like Percy Jackson with other mythologies?
The Red Pyramid uses Egyptian myth, and Tristan Strong draws on African American folklore and West African gods.
What classic is good for a Percy Jackson fan?
The Hobbit for a quest, or The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe for a secret world. Both read aloud well.
Sources
- Open Library Search API — First publication year, median print length and cover art for every book on this page. Queried 8 September 2026.
- Audible Premium Plus membership page — The only authoritative source for current Audible plans, prices and terms.
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