Books like 'Penguin Problems'
Readers who enjoyed Penguin Problems by Jory John also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
fantasy psychological action / adventure animals humor children season-winter outdoors anthropomorphism friendship
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The Evolution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin
Rated: 4.27 of 5 stars · 67 ratingsMara Dyer knows she isn't crazy. She knows that she can kill with her mind, and that Noah can heal with his. Mara also knows that somehow, Jude is not a hallucination. He is alive. Unfortunately, convincing her family and doctors that she's not unstable and doesn't need to be hospitalised isn't easy. The only person who actually believes her is Noah... -
After the Fall by Dan Santat
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsSHORTLISTED FOR THE 2019 UKLA BOOK AWARDAfter the fall, Humpty Dumpty is a broken egg. Life is tough: he's so afraid of heights, he can't even bear to climb onto his bed, or reach his favourite cereal on the top shelf at the supermarket. But one day, fuelled by his passion for bird-watching, he decides to conquer his fears and something amazing happens.. -
Ascendance of a Bookworm: Part 5 Volume 9 by Miya Kazuki, 香月 美夜
Rated: 4.60 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsThe Battle of Gerlach begins at last. Together with Matthias, Rozemyne must defeat the cold-blooded giebe Grausam—but an unexpected development makes that easier said than done. Body doubles, collateral damage, even more dark plots transpiring in the shadows.. -
The Good Egg by Jory John
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsIn this follow-up to Jory John and Pete Oswald’s popular picture book The Bad Seed, meet the next best thing: a very good egg, indeed!The good egg has been good for as long as he can remember. While the other eggs in his carton are kind of rotten, he always does the right, kind, and courteous thing... -
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Scaredy Squirrel by Mélanie Watt
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsScaredy Squirrel never leaves his nut tree. It's way too dangerous out there. He could encounter tarantulas, green Martians or killer bees. But in his tree, every day is the same and if danger comes along, he's well-prepared. Scaredy Squirrel's emergency kit includes antibacterial soap, Band-Aids and a parachute.Day after day he watches and waits, and waits and watches, until one day ..Categorized as:
animals anthropomorphism children friendship humor outdoors xenofiction action-adventure -
Giraffes Can't Dance by Giles Andreae
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 38 ratingsGerald the giraffe longs to dance, but his legs are too skinny and his neck is too long. At the Jungle Dance, the warthogs waltz, the chimps cha-cha, and the lions tango. "Giraffes can't dance," they all jeer when it's Gerald's turn to prance. But with some sound advice from a wise cricket, Gerald starts swaying to his own sweet tune...Categorized as:
animals anthropomorphism children friendship humor outdoors xenofiction action-adventure -
The Star Outside My Window by Onjali Q. Raúf
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsMy mum is up there somewhere. She's waiting -- I can feel it. I just have to find her in time, that's all ... Because when I do, I'll know the truth about who stole her. ' Told through the innocent voice of a child, this is a story that celebrates the power of hope and resilience, from the author of The Boy at the Back of the Class.On her tenth birthday, Aniyah makes a wish -- a wish for her mum...Categorized as:
family friendship children middle-grade action-adventure fiction children-books space -
Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah by Richard Bach
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 35 ratingsIn the cloud-washed airspace between the cornfields of Illinois and blue infinity, a man puts his faith in the propeller of his biplane. For disillusioned writer and itinerant barnstormer Richard Bach, belief is as real as a full tank of gas and sparks firing in the cylinders.. -
The North Star by Peter H. Reynolds
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsAfter following paths and signs determined by others, a young boy finally realizes that he must find his own individual way in life...Categorized as:
children action-adventure book children-books fiction journey psychological realistic -
Orion and the Dark by Emma Yarlett
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsOrion is very scared of the dark — until Dark decides to pay him a visit!Orion is scared of a lot of things, but most of all he’s scared of the dark. So one night the Dark decides to take Orion on an adventure. Emma Yarlett’s second picture book combines her incredible storytelling and artwork with die-cut pages that bring the Dark to life... -
Deadly Little Lessons by Laurie Faria Stolarz
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsCamelia Hammond's trying junior year of high school is finally over...but her troubles aren't. After she discovers a painful truth about her family, she escapes to a summer arts program in Rhode Island. Determined to put family - and boyfriend - drama behind her, she throws herself into her artwork.At the arts school, she gets caught up in the case of Sasha Beckerman, a local girl who is missing... -
How to Catch a Star by Oliver Jeffers
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsOnce there was a boy, and that boy loved stars very much. So much so that he decided to catch one of his very own. But how? Waiting for them to grow tired from being up in the sky all night doesn't work. Climbing to the top of the tallest tree? No, not tall enough. The boy has a rocket ship . . . but it is made of paper and doesn't fly well at all... -
Sheila Rae, the Brave by Kevin Henkes
Rated: 4.23 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsSheila Rae, the Brave is a warm, humorous, and loving story of sibling sympathy and support. Just because Sheila Rae is older, she doesn't always know better!This classic picture book about overcoming fear is written and illustrated by Kevin Henkes, the nationally bestselling and celebrated creator of Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse, Owen, and Kitten's First Full Moon... -
More Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark by Alvin Schwartz
Rated: 4.12 of 5 stars · 25 ratingsAll those who enjoyed shuddering their way through Alvin Schwartz's first volume of Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark will find a satisfyingly spooky sequel in this new collection of the macabre, the funny, and the fantastic...Categorized as:
children humor 20th-century action-adventure anthologies audiobook children-books classics -
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The Grouchy Ladybug by Eric Carle
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 28 ratingsFrom Eric Carle, New York Times bestselling author of The Very Hungry Caterpillar and From Head to Toe, comes the classic story of one very grouchy ladybug. Eric Carle's bright artwork and signature style will charm both ardent fans and new readers alike...Categorized as:
animals anthropomorphism children friendship humor outdoors xenofiction action-adventure -
The Retribution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin
Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars · 49 ratingsMara Dyer wants to believe there's more to the lies she’s been told.There is.She doesn’t stop to think about where her quest for the truth might lead.She should.She never had to imagine how far she would go for vengeance.She will now.Loyalties are betrayed, guilt and innocence tangle, and fate and chance collide in this shocking conclusion to Mara Dyer’s story.Retribution has arrived... -
The Anxiety of Kalix the Werewolf: A Novel by Martin Millar
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsNow eighteen, Scottish teenage werewolf Kalix MacRinnalch is settling in London, though she still struggles with anxiety, depression, and self-abuse. Her new friends support her ? and all is fine until the Guild of Werewolf Hunters start picking off her clan, one by one. Most of the Scottish Werewolf Clan have a very low opinion of Kalix Macrinnalch, youngest daughter of the Thane... -
Lost Girl by Anne Francis Scott
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsLost Girl - Readers' Favorite Award Finalist in Paranormal FictionRenowned sculptor Allison Weathers doesn't believe in ghosts. But when a tragic twist of fate leads her to the small mountain town of Dawson Mills, Tennessee, she soon learns that the dead don't always stay silent. Shadows begin to shift in the rambling, old Victorian farmhouse she's purchased. Voices come from nowhere... -
Off & Away by Cale Atkinson
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsHow would you get mail if you lived in the middle of the sea? It's Jo's dad's job to deliver it, taking bottles wherever they need to go. He always comes home with exciting stories to tell—but Jo is far too afraid to go out on the ocean herself. Until Dad gets a bad sea cold, that is. With no one but Jo to deliver the bottles, she must find her courage and set sail alone... -
Can I Give You a Squish? by Emily Neilson
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsAn important lesson about consent for over-exuberant little huggers, nestled inside this lighthearted, summery story about expressions of love and friendship.Kai is a little mer-boy who's big on hugs--or "squishes," as he and his mama call them... -
Vigor Mortis: Book 2 by Natalie Maher
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsAs Vita's humanity slowly drips away, monsters fallen from an island above spread throughout her home. While she fights fellow horrors outside the city's walls, her family suffers threats from within them. Yet surely, there's no problem enough power can't solve... and if there's one thing eating souls is good for, it's power... -
The Discovery of Heaven by Harry Mulisch
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 35 ratingsHarry Mulisch's magnum opus, is a rich mosaic of twentieth-century trauma in which many themes—friendship, loyalty, family, art, technology, religion, fate, good, and evil—suffuse a suspenseful and resplendent narrative.The Discovery of Heaven begins with the meeting of Onno and Max, two complicated individuals whom fate has mysteriously and magically brought together... -
What Lies Beyond The Stars by Michael Goorjian
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratings“Something in me knows of a life I was meant to live but for whatever reason, I have not . . . ”Words that ring painfully true for Adam Sheppard, a San Francisco programmer who has spent the vast majority of his 30-something years lost in the dim glow of a computer screen...Categorized as:
humor action-adventure adult book contemporary fiction literary-fiction magical-realism -
The Bound Worlds by Megan E. O'Keefe
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsWorlds will collide and fates will be rewritten in the thrilling conclusion to the Devoured Worlds space opera trilogy by award-winning author Megan E. O’Keefe. Naira and Tarquin have found a new home on Seventh Cradle. But the peace they’ve built is short-lived as mysterious assailants ambush the settlement and Naira is haunted by visions of a monstrous future... -
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The Complete Cosmicomics by Italo Calvino, Jefferson Mays
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsThe definitive edition of Calvino’s cosmicomics, bringing together all of these enchanting stories—including some never before translated—in one volume for the first timeIn Italo Calvino’s cosmicomics, primordial beings cavort on the nearby surface of the moon, play marbles with atoms, and bear ecstatic witness to Earth’s first dawn... -
Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend by Matthew Dicks
Rated: 4.12 of 5 stars · 42 ratingsImaginary friend Budo narrates this heartwarming story of love, loyalty, and the power of the imagination—the perfect read for anyone who has ever had a friend . . . real or otherwise.Budo is lucky as imaginary friends go. He's been alive for more than five years, which is positively ancient in the world of imaginary friends...Categorized as:
children family friendship 21st-century action-adventure audiobook book children-books -
Rules for a Knight by Ethan Hawke, Alessandro Nivola
Rated: 4.15 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsIt is 1483, and Sir Thomas Lemuel Hawke, a Cornish knight, is about to ride into battle. On the eve of his departure, he composes a letter to his four young children, consisting of twenty virtues that provide instruction on how to live a noble life, and on all the lessons, large and small, that he might have imparted to them himself were he not expecting to die on the battlefield...Categorized as:
children family 21st-century action-adventure audiobook book children-books classics -
The Enchanted Horse by Magdalen Nabb
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsA little toy horse is about to change Irina’s life forever.Award-winning classic young fiction, beautifully illustrated.Bella was real… Dreams don’t eat hay and drink water. Dreams don’t leave footprints in the snow.When Irina sees a tatty horse in a junk-shop window, she thinks it looks sad and lonely. Irina is an only child and wants nothing more than to take care of this horse...Categorized as:
animals children action-adventure book children-books classics female-author fiction -
Big Al by Andrew Clements, Yuu Yoshii
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsPoor Big Al! He just wants to make friends. And in the whole wide blue sea you can't find a nicer fish. But because Big Al is large and scary-looking, the little fish are afraid to get to know him. What can he do? He tries everything he can think of -- from disguising himself with seaweed to burrowing under the ocean floor so he'll look smaller... -
Mystic Tea by Rea Nolan Martin
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsA community of quirky, mismatched, and endearing women struggle to find meaning and purpose on a ramshackle monastery in upstate New York. Having spent their lives in service to a church that seems to no longer serve them, they are confused about their own futures and the future of the entire monastery... -
Behind the Attic Wall by Sylvia Cassedy
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsThey were watching...and waitingAt twelve, Maggie had been thrown out of more boarding schools than she cared to remember. "Impossible to handle," they said nasty, mean, disobedient, rebellious, thieving anything they could say to explain why she must be removed from the school.Maggie was thin and pale, with shabby clothes and stringy hair, when she arrived at her new home...Categorized as:
children family friendship action-adventure book children-books classics coming-of-age -
My Ishmael by Daniel Quinn
Rated: 4.05 of 5 stars · 21 ratingsAn extraordinary and startlingly original sequel to Ishmael "Enthralling, shocking, hope-filled, and utterly fearless, Daniel Quinn leads us deeper and deeper into the human heart, history, and spirit. In My Ishmael, Quinn strikes out into entirely new territory, posing questions that will rock you on your heels, and providing tantalizing possibilities for a truly new world vision... -
Aesop's Fables by Aesop, Ann McGovern
Rated: 4.02 of 5 stars · 41 ratingsSixty-seven familiar and not so familiar fables from Aesop, including the tortoise and the hare, the frogs who wanted a king, the lion who fell in love, and the donkey who danced on the roof...Categorized as:
animals anthropomorphism children family humor outdoors xenofiction action-adventure -
Rainbow Fish to the Rescue! by Marcus Pfister
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 23 ratingsIn this exciting new adventure, Rainbow Fish is torn between his newfound friends and a lonely striped fish who is not allowed to join the group because he lacks a shiny scale... -
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Fearless Girls, Wise Women & Beloved Sisters: Heroines in Folktales from Around the World by Kathleen Ragan, Jane Yolen
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 21 ratingsDismayed by the predominance of male protagonists in her daughters' books, Kathleen Ragan set out to collect the stories of our forgotten heroines. Gathered from around the world, from regions as diverse as sub-Saharan Africa and Western Europe, from North and South American Indian cultures and New World settlers, from Asia and the Middle East, these 100 folktales celebrate strong female heroines...Categorized as:
children family friendship action-adventure anthologies classics fairy-tale female-author -
Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll
Rated: 4.02 of 5 stars · 68 ratingsWhen Alice steps through a mirror, she enters a reflection of her world where backwards is forwards, the future is remembered, and only the opposite of logic makes sense. Increasingly befuddled, she's challenged by the belligerent Humpty Dumpty, Tweedledum and Tweedledee, the nonsense rhymes of the Jabberwocky, and the discovery that she's a pawn in a living game of chess... -
Everybody Sees the Ants by A.S. King
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 25 ratingsLucky Linderman didn't ask for his life. He didn't ask his grandfather not to come home from the Vietnam War. He didn't ask for a father who never got over it. He didn't ask for a mother who keeps pretending their dysfunctional family is fine. And he didn't ask to be the target of Nader McMillan's relentless bullying, which has finally gone too far... -
Deadly Little Games by Laurie Faria Stolarz
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsHigh school juniors Camelia and Ben have discovered a powerful bond: They both possess the power of psychometry, the ability to see the future through touch. For Ben, the gift is a frightening liability. When he senses a strong threat or betrayal, he risks losing control. Camelia's gift is more mysterious. When she works with clay, her hands sculpt messages her mind doesn't yet comprehend...Categorized as:
family friendship action-adventure book coming-of-age contemporary dark dark-fantasy -
Horrible Bear! by Ame Dyckman
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThe New York Times-bestselling duo behind Wolfie the Bunny presents a hilarious read-aloud about accidents, outbursts, manners...and the power of saying "I'm sorry."Bear didn't mean to break a little girl's kite, but she's upset anyway--upset enough to shout "HORRIBLE BEAR!" Bear can't believe it. He's not horrible! But now he's upset, too--upset enough to come up with a truly Horrible Bear idea...Categorized as:
animals anthropomorphism children friendship humor xenofiction action-adventure book -
Bug in a Vacuum by Mélanie Watt
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsA bug flies through an open door into a house, through a bathroom, across a kitchen and bedroom and into a living room ... where its entire life changes with the switch of a button. Sucked into the void of a vacuum bag, this one little bug moves through denial, bargaining, anger, despair and eventually acceptance -- the five stages of grief -- as it comes to terms with its fate... -
I Am (Not) Scared by Anna Kang
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsTwo fuzzy friends go to an amusement park. They try to convince each other that there are much scarier things than the roller coaster. Hairy spiders! Aliens! Fried ants! They soon discover that sometimes being scared isn’t as “scary” as they thought... -
Normal Rules Don't Apply by Kate Atkinson
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsA dazzling collection of eleven interconnected stories from the bestselling, award-winning author of Shrines of Gaiety and Life After Life which offer the gimlet eye and delightful social critique that have made Atkinson one of the most lauded writers of our time.In this brilliant volume, nothing is quite as it seems... -
Everything's Fine by Matthew Pridham
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 7 ratingsEric’s day is off to a rough start: his regional managers are in town, he’s running late to work, the moon seems to be falling apart, and he just can’t seem to get his tie right. At least he has his priorities straight: it’s the little things that matter... -
There Are Monsters Everywhere by Mercer Mayer
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsWhat kid doesn't suspect that there are monsters lurking under the bed, behind the shower curtain, in the basement, and even outside by the garbage cans? Mercer Mayer brilliantly and hilariously captures this classic childhood fear—and conquers it! Kids will cheer as the young hero of the story takes matters into his own hands by learning karate... -
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Brave Enough for Two: A Hoot & Olive Story by Jonathan D. Voss
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsIn the spirit of Goodnight Moon and The Night Gardener comes a heartwarming picture book about friendship that is sure to become a classic from debut author-illustrator Jonathan D. Voss. Olive is a little girl who likes the types of adventures that exist in books. Her best friend Hoot, a stuffed-animal owl, prefers the ones that take place in the real world... -
A New Kind of Wild by Zara Gonzalez Hoang
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsThis sweet author-illustrator debut celebrates imagination, the magic of friendship, and all the different ways we make a new place feel like home.For Ren, home is his grandmother’s little house, and the lush forest that surrounds it. Home is a place of magic and wonder, filled with all the fantastical friends that Ren dreams up. Home is where his imagination can run wild... -
Ishmael by Daniel Quinn
Rated: 3.99 of 5 stars · 67 ratingsWinner of the 1992 Turner Tomorrow Fellowship, "Ishmael" is a unique and captivating novel that has earned a large and passionate following among readers and critics worldwide... -
Julia's House Moves On by Ben Hatke
Rated: 4.15 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsJulia's house is restless.Julia and her family of lost creatures are ready to move on. But where will they go? And how will they get there?Don’t worry—Julia has a plan for that! Julia always has a plan. But when Julia's plans all fail...What's left for her?Julia and her house full of fantastic friends are back for another sweet adventure from #1 New York Times-bestselling author Ben Hatke... -
The Boy Detective Fails by Joe Meno
Rated: 3.94 of 5 stars · 16 ratings"In the twilight of a childhood full of wonder, Billy Argo, boy detective, is brokenhearted to find that his younger sister and crime-solving partner, Caroline, has committed suicide... -
Time Dancers by Steve Cash
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsSteve Cash created “an absorbing [and] intriguing saga” (The San Diego Union-Tribune) in his debut novel, The Meq. Outwardly indistinguishable from human beings, but with abilities no human can claim, the Meq search for their lost history and face a mysterious prophesied reckoning. . . .It has been thirty-eight years since Zianno–known as Z–turned twelve. In appearance, he has not aged a day...
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