“What are the best books about or featuring Orphans?” We looked at 333 of the top Orphan books, aggregating and ranking them so we could answer that very question!
The top 35 titles, all appearing on 2 or more “Best Orphan” book lists, are ranked below by how many lists they appear on. The remaining 275+ titles, as well as the lists we used are in alphabetical order at the bottom of the page.
Happy Scrolling!
Lists It Appears On:
Marie Louise de la Ramée (1839-1908) wrote many popular novels of adventure and romance in the 1870s and 80s under the pen name of Ouida. She also produced a number of captivating stories for youngsters. One of the best, A Dog of Flanders,. First published in 1872, A Dog of Flanders tells the moving story of Nello, a gentle boy with aspirations of becoming a painter, and Patrasche — his devoted Belgian work dog. The two, along with Nello’s grandfather, live in a little village near Antwerp where Nello’s idol, the artist Rubens, once worked. Nello and Patrasche suffer countless hardships — poverty, hunger, cruelty, and rejection. But they persevere in the face of adversity, up to their tragic, bittersweet end. Rich in the sentiment of its Romantic tradition, yet convincing in its portrayal of both human and animal nature, this touching classic has tugged at the heartstrings of readers and listeners alike for generations. It remains one of the nineteenth century’s most imaginative and arresting works of fiction for children.
Lists It Appears On:
Sara Crewe, an exceptionally intelligent and imaginative student at Miss Minchin’s Select Seminary for Young Ladies, is devastated when her adored, indulgent father dies. Now penniless and banished to a room in the attic, Sara is demeaned, abused, and forced to work as a servant. How this resourceful girl’s fortunes change again is at the center of A Little Princess, one of the best-loved stories in all of children’s literature. This unique and fully annotated edition appends excerpts from Frances Hodgson Burnett’s original 1888 novella Sara Crewe and the stage play that preceded the novel, as well as an early story, “Behind the White Brick,” allowing readers to see how A Little Princess evolved. In his delightful introduction, U. C. Knoepflmacher considers the fairy-tale allusions and literary touchstones that place the book among the major works of Victorian literature, and shows it to be an exceptionally rich and resonant novel.
Lists It Appears On:
Collects the earliest adventures of Batman and Robin as they battle a variety of villains including the Monk and the Joker.
Lists It Appears On:
Life as a ship’s boy aboard HMS Dolphin is a dream come true for Jacky Faber. Gone are the days of scavenging for food and fighting for survival on the streets of eighteenth-century London. Instead, Jacky is becoming a skilled and respected sailor as the crew pursues pirates on the high seas.
Lists It Appears On:
Cat doesn’t mind living in the shadow of his sister, Gwendolen, the most promising young witch ever seen on Coven Street. But trouble starts brewing the moment the two orphans are summoned to live in Chrestomanci Castle. Frustrated that the witches of the castle refuse to acknowledge her talents, Gwendolen conjures up a scheme that could throw whole worlds out of whack.
Lists It Appears On:
Lists It Appears On:
When Jerusha Abbott, an eighteen-year-old girl living in an orphan asylum, was told that a mysterious millionaire had agreed to pay for her education, it was like a dream come true. For the first time in her life, she had someone she could pretend was “family.” But everything was not perfect, for he chose to remain anonymous and asked that she only write him concerning her progress in school. Who was this mysterious gentleman and would Jerusha ever meet him?
Lists It Appears On:
When orphaned Dave is sent to the Hebrew Home for Boys and treated cruelly, he sneaks out at night and welcomed into the music- and culture-filled world of the Harlem Renaissance, where he discovers the power of friendship.
Lists It Appears On:
David Copperfield is the story of a young man’s adventures on his journey from an unhappy and impoverished childhood to the discovery of his vocation as a successful novelist. Among the gloriously vivid cast of characters he encounters are his tyrannical stepfather, Mr Murdstone; his brilliant, but ultimately unworthy school-friend James Steerforth; his formidable aunt, Betsey Trotwood; the eternally humble, yet treacherous Uriah Heep; frivolous, enchanting Dora Spenlow; and the magnificently impecunious Wilkins Micawber, one of literature’s great comic creations. In David Copperfield – the novel he described as his ‘favourite child’ – Dickens drew revealingly on his own experiences to create one of the most exuberant and enduringly popular works, filled with tragedy and comedy in equal measure. This edition uses the text of the first volume publication of 1850, and includes updated suggestions for further reading, original illustrations by ‘Phiz’, a revised chronology and expanded notes. In his new introduction, Jeremy Tambling discusses the novel’s autobiographical elements, and its central themes of memory and identity.
Lists It Appears On:
When Rose Campbell, a shy orphan, arrives at “The Aunt Hill” to live with her six aunts and seven boisterous male cousins, she is quite overwhelmed. How could such a delicate young lady, used to the quiet hallways of a girls’ boarding school, exist in such a spirited home? It is the arrival of Uncle Alec that changes everything. Much to the horror of her aunts, Rose’s forward-thinking uncle insists that the child get out of the parlor and into the sunshine. And with a little courage and lots of adventures with her mischievous but loving cousins, Rose begins to bloom.
Lists It Appears On:
Emily Starr never knew what it was to be lonely — until her beloved father died. Now Emily’s an orphan, and her mother’s snobbish relatives are taking her to live with them at New Moon Farm. She’s sure she won’t be happy. Emily deals with stiff, stern Aunt Elizabeth and her malicious classmates by holding her head high and using her quick wit. Things begin to change when she makes friends: with Teddy, who does marvelous drawings; with Perry, who’s sailed all over the world with his father yet has never been to school; and above all, with Ilse, a tomboy with a blazing temper. Amazingly, Emily finds New Moon beautiful and fascinating. With new friends and adventures, Emily might someday think of herself as Emily of New Moon.
Lists It Appears On:
Some terrifying experience has blocked Tony and Tia’s memory of the past. But because they have supernatural powers, they are sure that they come from another world–and that their people still exist somewhere. Then Tony and Tia find that they must escape from men who want to use their special powers for evil. They begin a desperate search to find their true home–which leads them to the strange and mysterious Witch Mountain.
Lists It Appears On:
In her strongest work to date, Lois Lowry once again creates a mysterious but plausible future world. It is a society ruled by savagery and deceit that shuns and discards the weak. Left orphaned and physically flawed, young Kira faces a frightening, uncertain future. Blessed with an almost magical talent that keeps her alive, she struggles with ever broadening responsibilities in her quest for truth, discovering things that will change her life forever. As she did in The Giver, Lowry challenges readers to imagine what our world could become, and what will be considered valuable. Every reader will be taken by Kira’s plight and will long ponder her haunting world and the hope for the future.
Lists It Appears On:
When James accidentally drops some magic crystals by the old peach tree, strange things start to happen. The peach at the top of the tree begins to grow, and before long it’s as big as a house. When James discovers a secret entranceway into the fruit and crawls inside, he meets wonderful new friends–the Old-Green-Grasshopper, the dainty Ladybug, and the Centipede of the multiple boots. After years of feeling like an outsider in his aunts’ house, James finally found a place where he belongs. With a snip of the stem, the peach household starts rolling away–and the adventure begins! Roald Dahl’s first and most widely celebrated book for young people continues to thrill readers around the world. “This is a stunning book to be cherished for its story, a superb fantasy.”–Chicago Tribune “A beautifully written, fantastic book.”–Christian Science Monitor
Lists It Appears On:
Jeffrey Lionel “Maniac” Magee might have lived a normal life if a freak accident hadn’t made him an orphan. After living with his unhappy and uptight aunt and uncle for eight years, he decides to run–and not just run away, but run. This is where the myth of Maniac Magee begins, as he changes the lives of a racially divided small town with his amazing and legendary feats.
Lists It Appears On:
He’s a boy called Jew. Gypsy. Stopthief. Runt. Happy. Fast. Filthy son of Abraham. He’s a boy who lives in the streets of Warsaw. He’s a boy who steals food for himself and the other orphans. He’s a boy who believes in bread, and mothers, and angels. He’s a boy who wants to be a Nazi some day, with tall shiny jackboots and a gleaming Eagle hat of his own. Until the day that suddenly makes him change his mind. And when the trains come to empty the Jews from the ghetto of the damned, he’s a boy who realizes it’s safest of all to be nobody. Newbery Medalist Jerry Spinelli takes us to one of the most devastating settings imaginable—Nazi-occupied Warsaw of World War II—and tells a tale of heartbreak, hope, and survival through the bright eyes of a young orphan. From the Hardcover edition.
Lists It Appears On:
For Amelia and her friends, the strict English boarding school she lives in is all she has ever known. The sprawling estate, bordered by unknown territory on all four sides, is both orphanage, academy, and prison. The school has a large staff, but only five students, none of whom know what their real names are, or even how old they are.
Lists It Appears On:
Orphan Peter and his mates are dispatched to an island ruled by the evil King Zarboff. They set sail aboard the Never Land, a ship carrying a precious and mysterious cargo the “greatest treasure on earth” – but is it gold, jewels, or something far more mysterious and dangerous?
Lists It Appears On:
In this Newbery Honor Book, a troublesome 12-year-old orphan, staying with an elderly artist who needs her, remembers the only other time she was happy in a foster home, with a family that truly seemed to care about her.
Lists It Appears On:
Tommy and his sister Annika have a new neighbor, and her name is Pippi Longstocking. She has crazy red pigtails, no parents to tell her what to do, a horse that lives on her porch, and a flair for the outrageous that seems to lead to one adventure after another! –back cover
Lists It Appears On:
When orphaned 11-year-old Pollyanna comes to live with austere and wealthy Aunt Polly, her philosophy of gladness brings happiness to her aunt and other members of the community, somewhat to their surprise.
Lists It Appears On:
When a ship’s mutiny forces a young noble English couple out onto the remote African coast, their child is born into the wild. Their deaths a short time later leave the boy alone in the jungle wilderness–until a she-ape adopts him and raises him as her own. Reluctantly accepted into the tribe by its fierce leader, Kerchak, the baby Tarzan must prove himself by learning the ways of survival in the jungle: how to talk with animals, swing through the trees, and fight the great predators. In time, his strength, courage, and human intelligence earn him a place as Lord of the Jungle. But when civilized men enter the jungle, Tarzan is forced to choose between two worlds. Edgar Rice Burroughs’ classic tale is both a reflection on civilization from an outside point of view and an exploration of the primal force within us all. Narrated by Simon Prebble
Lists It Appears On:
The Aldens begin their adventure by making a home in a boxcar. Their goal is to stay together, and in the process they find a grandfather.
Lists It Appears On:
The Jungle Books can be regarded as classic stories told by an adult to children. But they also constitute a complex literary work of art in which the whole of Kipling’s philosophy of life is expressed in miniature. They are best known for the ‘Mowgli’ stories; the tale of a baby abandoned and brought up by wolves, educated in the ways and secrets of the jungle by Kaa the python, Baloo the bear, and Bagheera the black panther. The stories, a mixture of fantasy, myth, and magic, are underpinned by Kipling’s abiding preoccupation with the theme of self-discovery, and the nature of the ‘Law’.
Lists It Appears On:
When orphaned young Maria Merryweather arrives at Moonacre Manor, she feels as if she’s entered Paradise. Her new guardian, her uncle Sir Benjamin, is kind and funny; the Manor itself feels like home right away; and every person and animal she meets is like an old friend. But there is something incredibly sad beneath all of this beauty and comfort—a tragedy that happened years ago, shadowing Moonacre Manor and the town around it—and Maria is determined to learn about it, change it, and give her own life story a happy ending. But what can one solitary girl do? A new-fashioned story that is as wonderful as the best fairy tales.
Lists It Appears On:
Dozens of children respond to this peculiar ad in the newspaper and are then put through a series of mind-bending tests, which readers take along with them. Only four children-two boys and two girls-succeed. Their challenge: to go on a secret mission that only the most intelligent and inventive children could complete. To accomplish it they will have to go undercover at the Learning Institute for the Very Enlightened, where the only rule is that there are no rules. But what they’ll find in the hidden underground tunnels of the school is more than your average school supplies. So, if you’re gifted, creative, or happen to know Morse Code, they could probably use your help.
Lists It Appears On:
“One of the most delightful and enduring classics of children’s literature, The Secret Garden by Victorian author Frances Hodgson Burnett has remained a firm favorite with children the world over ever since it made its first appearance. Initially published as a serial story in 1910 in The American Magazine, it was brought out in novel form in 1911. The plot centers round Mary Lennox, a young English girl who returns to England from India, having suffered the immense trauma by losing both her parents in a cholera epidemic. However, her memories of her parents are not pleasant, as they were a selfish, neglectful and pleasure-seeking couple. Mary is given to the care of her uncle Archibald Craven, whom she has never met. She travels to his home, Misselthwaite Manor located in the gloomy Yorkshire, a vast change from the sunny and warm climate she was used to. When she arrives, she is a rude, stubborn and given to stormy temper tantrums. However, her nature undergoes a gradual transformation when she learns of the tragedies that have befallen her strict and disciplinarian uncle whom she earlier feared and despised. Once when he’s away from home, Mary discovers a charming walled garden which is always kept locked. The mystery deepens when she hears sounds of sobbing from somewhere within her uncle’s vast mansion. The kindly servants ignore her queries or pretend they haven’t heard, spiking Mary’s curiosity. The Secret Garden appeals to both young and old alike. It has wonderful elements of mystery, spirituality, charming characters and an authentic rendering of childhood emotions and experiences. Commonsense, truth and kindness, compassion and a belief in the essential goodness of human beings lie at the heart of this unforgettable story. It is the best known of Frances Hodgson Burnett’s works, though most of us have definitely heard of, if not read, her other novel Little Lord Fauntleroy.
Lists It Appears On:
Pauline, Petrova and Posy are orphans determined to help out their new family by joining the Children’s Academy of Dancing and Stage Training. But when they vow to make a name for themselves, they have no idea it’s going to be such hard work! They launch themselves into the world of show business, complete with working papers, the glare of the spotlight, and practice, practice, practice! Pauline is destined for the movies. Posy is a born dancer. But practical Petrova finds she’d rather pilot a plane than perform a pirouette. Each girl must find the courage to follow her dream.
Lists It Appears On:
In what may be Dickens’s best novel, humble, orphaned Pip is apprenticed to the dirty work of the forge but dares to dream of becoming a gentleman — and one day, under sudden and enigmatic circumstances, he finds himself in possession of “great expectations.” In this gripping tale of crime and guilt, revenge and reward, the compelling characters include Magwitch, the fearful and fearsome convict; Estella, whose beauty is excelled only by her haughtiness; and the embittered Miss Havisham, an eccentric jilted bride.
Lists It Appears On:
Little orphan Heidi goes to live high in the Alps with her gruff grandfather and brings happiness to all who know her on the mountain. When Heidi goes to Frankfurt to work in a wealthy household, she dreams of returning to the mountains and meadows, her friend Peter, and her beloved grandfather.
Lists It Appears On:
After the grisly murder of his entire family, a toddler wanders into a graveyard where the ghosts and other supernatural residents agree to raise him as one of their own. Nobody Owens, known to his friends as Bod, is a normal boy. He would be completely normal if he didn’t live in a sprawling graveyard, being raised and educated by ghosts, with a solitary guardian who belongs to neither the world of the living nor of the dead. There are dangers and adventures in the graveyard for a boy. But if Bod leaves the graveyard, then he will come under attack from the man Jack—who has already killed Bod’s family… Beloved master storyteller Neil Gaiman returns with a luminous new novel for the audience that embraced his New York Times bestselling modern classic Coraline. Magical, terrifying, and filled with breathtaking adventures, The Graveyard Book is sure to enthrall readers of all ages.
Lists It Appears On:
Fiery love, shocking twists of fate, and tragic mysteries put a lonely governess in jeopardy in JANE EYRE Orphaned as a child, Jane has felt an outcast her whole young life. Her courage is tested once again when she arrives at Thornfield Hall, where she has been hired by the brooding, proud Edward Rochester to care for his ward Adèle. Jane finds herself drawn to his troubled yet kind spirit. She falls in love. Hard. But there is a terrifying secret inside the gloomy, forbidding Thornfield Hall. Is Rochester hiding from Jane? Will Jane be left heartbroken and exiled once again?
Lists It Appears On:
A gripping portrayal of London’s dark criminal underbelly, published in Penguin Classics with an introduction by Philip Horne. The story of Oliver Twist – orphaned, and set upon by evil and adversity from his first breath – shocked readers when it was published. After running away from the workhouse and pompous beadle Mr Bumble, Oliver finds himself lured into a den of thieves peopled by vivid and memorable characters – the Artful Dodger, vicious burglar Bill Sikes, his dog Bull’s Eye, and prostitute Nancy, all watched over by cunning master-thief Fagin. Combining elements of Gothic Romance, the Newgate Novel and popular melodrama, Dickens created an entirely new kind of fiction, scathing in its indictment of a cruel society, and pervaded by an unforgettable sense of threat and mystery. This Penguin Classics edition of Oliver Twist is the first critical edition to faithfully reproduce the text as its earliest readers would have encountered it from its serialisation in Bentley’s Miscellany, and includes an introduction by Philip Horne, a glossary of Victorian thieves’ slang, a chronology of Dickens’s life, a map of contemporary London and all of George Cruikshank’s original illustrations. For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.
Lists It Appears On:
As soon as Anne Shirley arrives at the snug white farmhouse called Green Gables, she is sure she wants to stay forever . . . but will the Cuthberts send her back to to the orphanage? Anne knows she’s not what they expected—a skinny girl with fiery red hair and a temper to match. If only she can convince them to let her stay, she’ll try very hard not to keep rushing headlong into scrapes and blurting out the first thing that comes to her mind. Anne is not like anyone else, the Cuthberts agree; she is special—a girl with an enormous imagination. This orphan girl dreams of the day when she can call herself Anne of Green Gables.
Lists It Appears On:
Harry Potter’s life is miserable. His parents are dead and he’s stuck with his heartless relatives, who force him to live in a tiny closet under the stairs. But his fortune changes when he receives a letter that tells him the truth about himself: he’s a wizard. A mysterious visitor rescues him from his relatives and takes him to his new home, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
| # | Books | Authors | Lists |
| 36 | A Blessing from Above: Little Golden Book | Patti Henderson | Life Song |
| 37 | A Brief History of Montmaray (The Montmaray Journals, #1) | Michelle Cooper | Goodreads |
| 38 | A Conspiracy of Kings (The Queen’s Thief, #4) | Megan Whalen Turner | Goodreads |
| 39 | A Deadly Secret | Wikipedia | |
| 40 | A Drowned Maiden’s Hair | Laura Amy Schlitz | Goodreads |
| 41 | A Forest of Doors: An Orphan’s Quest | L.A. Muse | Goodreads |
| 42 | A Little Life | Wikipedia | |
| 43 | A Mother for Choco | Keiko Kasza | Life Song |
| 44 | A Murder for Her Majesty | Beth Hilgartner | Goodreads |
| 45 | A Riddle of Roses | Wikipedia | |
| 46 | A Series of Unfortunate Events | Wikipedia | |
| 47 | Acorna: The Unicorn Girl (Acorna #1) | Anne McCaffrey | Goodreads |
| 48 | Addie Pray | Wikipedia | |
| 49 | Adoption Is For Always | Linda Walvoord Girard | Life Song |
| 50 | Akin to Anne: Tales of Other Orphans | L.M. Montgomery | Goodreads |
| 51 | Alone on a Wide, Wide Sea | Wikipedia | |
| 52 | Amy’s Eyes | Wikipedia | |
| 53 | Animal’s People | Wikipedia | |
| 54 | Anne Shirley | Barnes And Noble | |
| 55 | Annie | Thomas Meehan | Goodreads |
| 56 | Any Roald Dahl protagonist. | Barnes And Noble | |
| 57 | Ascent (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 58 | Astro City, Vol. 2: Confession | Kurt Busiek | Goodreads |
| 59 | Ayala’s Angel | Wikipedia | |
| 60 | Ballad of the Desert | Wikipedia | |
| 61 | Bambi | Felix Salten | Goodreads |
| 62 | Barbary (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 63 | Bec (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 64 | Black Hearts in Battersea | Wikipedia | |
| 65 | Black Mamba Boy | Nadifa Mohamed | Goodreads |
| 66 | Blind Justice (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 67 | Blood Feud (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 68 | Books in A Series of Unfortunate Events | Wikipedia | |
| 69 | Brothers (Yu novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 70 | Bud, Not Buddy | Wikipedia | |
| 71 | Butterfly (Forgotten Children, #1) | Kyra Gregory | Goodreads |
| 72 | Buy a Bullet | Macmillan | |
| 73 | Calico Bush (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 74 | Captains of the Sands | Wikipedia | |
| 75 | Careful, He Might Hear You (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 76 | Celestina (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 77 | Chameleon (Forgotten Children, #2) | Kyra Gregory | Goodreads |
| 78 | Child of the Ghosts (Ghost, #1) | Jonathan Moeller | Goodreads |
| 79 | Clara Vaughan | Wikipedia | |
| 80 | Coin Locker Babies | Wikipedia | |
| 81 | Colors in the Dreamweaver’s Loom | Wikipedia | |
| 82 | Cousin Kate | Wikipedia | |
| 83 | Crocodile on the Sandbank | Wikipedia | |
| 84 | Crow Lake (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 85 | Crown of Fire | Wikipedia | |
| 86 | Curse of the Blue Tattoo | Wikipedia | |
| 87 | Cutting for Stone | Wikipedia | |
| 88 | Daenerys Targaryen | Barnes And Noble | |
| 89 | Dancing Through the Snow | Jean Little | Kids World |
| 90 | Daniel X: Watch the Skies | Wikipedia | |
| 91 | Dear Enemy (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 92 | Dragon and Thief | Wikipedia | |
| 93 | Dutch Uncle (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 94 | Echohawk | Wikipedia | |
| 95 | Eight Days of Luke | Wikipedia | |
| 96 | Ella Enchanted (Ella Enchanted #1) | Gail Carson Levine | Goodreads |
| 97 | Emergence (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 98 | Emily Climbs | Wikipedia | |
| 99 | Emily’s Quest | Wikipedia | |
| 100 | Escape from Genopolis | Wikipedia | |
| 101 | Escape to Last Man Peak | Wikipedia | |
| 102 | Eva Luna | Wikipedia | |
| 103 | Explosion in a Cathedral | Wikipedia | |
| 104 | Find Your Purpose Using Science | Gleb Tsipursky | Goodreads |
| 105 | Finding Verity | Faith Friese Nelson | Goodreads |
| 106 | Fingersmith (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 107 | Fiona Thorn and the Carapacem Spell | Jen Barton | Goodreads |
| 108 | Flambards | Wikipedia | |
| 109 | Flight of the Hawk | Wikipedia | |
| 110 | Flowering Nettle | Wikipedia | |
| 111 | Fly by Night | Frances Hardinge | Kids World |
| 112 | Foundling Mick | Wikipedia | |
| 113 | Frodo Baggins | Barnes And Noble | |
| 114 | Frost Fever (Cloak Games, #2) | Jonathan Moeller | Goodreads |
| 115 | Fugitive Pieces | Wikipedia | |
| 116 | Furies of Calderon (Codex Alera, #1) | Jim Butcher | Goodreads |
| 117 | God Found Us You | Lisa Tawn Bergren | Life Song |
| 118 | Going the Wrong Path | Arthur Weissmann | Goodreads |
| 119 | Good-bye, My Lady | Wikipedia | |
| 120 | Gossamer | Lois Lowry | Kids World |
| 121 | Green Angel | Wikipedia | |
| 122 | Hannah (Daughters of the Sea, #1) | Kathryn Lasky | Goodreads |
| 123 | Hannibal Rising | Wikipedia | |
| 124 | Happy Adoption Day! | John McCutcheon | Life Song |
| 125 | Harnessing Peacocks | Wikipedia | |
| 126 | Harriet the Spy | Powells | |
| 127 | Hattie Big Sky | Wikipedia | |
| 128 | Hawkes Harbor | Wikipedia | |
| 129 | Heligoland (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 130 | Hellbent | Macmillan | |
| 131 | His Dark Materials trilogy | Philip Pullman | The Guardian |
| 132 | Homecoming (Tillerman Cycle, #1) | Cynthia Voigt | Goodreads |
| 133 | Hoodoo | Ronald L. Smith | Goodreads |
| 134 | How To Be Alone: If You Want To And Even If You Don’t | Powells | |
| 135 | Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer Among the Indians | Mark Twain | Goodreads |
| 136 | I Love You Like Crazy Cakes | Rose A. Lewis | Life Song |
| 137 | I Will Love You | Alyssa Satin Capucilli | Life Song |
| 138 | I Wished for You | Marianne Richmond | Life Song |
| 139 | I, Coriander | Sally Gardner | Goodreads |
| 140 | James Bond books | Wikipedia | |
| 141 | Jessamy | Wikipedia | |
| 142 | Jip, His Story | Wikipedia | |
| 143 | Johnny Tremain | Esther Forbes | Goodreads |
| 144 | Josef Kavalier | Barnes And Noble | |
| 145 | Journey to the End of the Whale | Wikipedia | |
| 146 | Journey to the River Sea | Creative Cache | |
| 147 | Just David | Wikipedia | |
| 148 | Kaspar | Michael Morpurgo | Goodreads |
| 149 | Kay the Left-Handed | Wikipedia | |
| 150 | Kidnapped (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 151 | Kids Like Me in China | Ying Ying Fry | Life Song |
| 152 | Kim (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 153 | King Matt the First | Wikipedia | |
| 154 | Kipps | Wikipedia | |
| 155 | La joie de vivre | Wikipedia | |
| 156 | Lane Moore | Powells | |
| 157 | Le Rêve (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 158 | Lightning (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 159 | Little Foxes | Wikipedia | |
| 160 | Little Men | Louisa May Alcott | Goodreads |
| 161 | Little Orphan Annie | Barnes And Noble | |
| 162 | Little Soldier (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 163 | Lolita | Wikipedia | |
| 164 | Love Among the Ruins. A Romance of the Near Future | Wikipedia | |
| 165 | Luck in the Shadows | Wikipedia | |
| 166 | Magician (Feist novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 167 | Marianela (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 168 | Marjorie’s Quest | Wikipedia | |
| 169 | Matilda | Powells | |
| 170 | Mayoi Neko Overrun! | Wikipedia | |
| 171 | Meet the Austins | Wikipedia | |
| 172 | Meggy MacIntosh | Wikipedia | |
| 173 | Mel Foster and the Demon Butler | Wikipedia | |
| 174 | Memoirs of a Fox-Hunting Man | Wikipedia | |
| 175 | Missing May | Wikipedia | |
| 176 | Molly Moon’s Incredible Book of Hypnotism | Wikipedia | |
| 177 | Mommy’s Heart | Alexandra Maria Proca | Goodreads |
| 178 | Mommy’s Heart Went Pop | Christina Kyllonen | Life Song |
| 179 | Momo (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 180 | Monster Blood Tattoo: Foundling | Wikipedia | |
| 181 | Moonfleet | Wikipedia | |
| 182 | Mother of Pearl (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 183 | Motl, Peysi the Cantor’s Son | Wikipedia | |
| 184 | Mountains are Free | Wikipedia | |
| 185 | Mr. Vertigo | Wikipedia | |
| 186 | My Adopted Child, There’s No One Like You | Dr. Kevin Leman | Life Song |
| 187 | My Family Is Forever | Nancy Carlson | Life Song |
| 188 | Natasha’s Story | Michael Nicholson | Goodreads |
| 189 | Night Lamp | Wikipedia | |
| 190 | No Place Like Home (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 191 | Nobody’s Girl | Wikipedia | |
| 192 | Nothing Is Terrible | Wikipedia | |
| 193 | Of Human Bondage | Wikipedia | |
| 194 | One Day as a Tiger | Wikipedia | |
| 195 | One-Way (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 196 | Orphan at My Door | Wikipedia | |
| 197 | Orphan X | Macmillan | |
| 198 | Otherworlds: The Lost | Katherine L. Walker | Goodreads |
| 199 | Out of the Dark | Macmillan | |
| 200 | Outcast (Sutcliff novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 201 | Over the Moon: An Adoption Tale | Karen Katz | Life Song |
| 202 | Peter and the Secret of Rundoon | Wikipedia | |
| 203 | Peter and the Shadow Thieves | Wikipedia | |
| 204 | Peter and the Sword of Mercy | Wikipedia | |
| 205 | Peter Pan | J M Barrie | The Guardian |
| 206 | Plain Kate | Wikipedia | |
| 207 | Plum & Jaggers | Creative Cache | |
| 208 | Prince Caspian | Wikipedia | |
| 209 | Prisoner in a Red-Rose Chain | Wikipedia | |
| 210 | Q & A (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 211 | Queen Zixi of Ix: or the Story of the Magic Cloak | L. Frank Baum | Goodreads |
| 212 | Ramona | Wikipedia | |
| 213 | Ranald Bannerman’s Boyhood | Wikipedia | |
| 214 | Ranger’s Apprentice books | Wikipedia | |
| 215 | Rebel Fist (Cloak Games, #3) | Jonathan Moeller | Goodreads |
| 216 | Richard Sharpe stories | Wikipedia | |
| 217 | Richter 10 | Wikipedia | |
| 218 | Rose (Rose, #1) | Holly Webb | Goodreads |
| 219 | Rosie’s Family: An Adoption Story | Lori Rosove | Life Song |
| 220 | Ruby Holler | Wikipedia | |
| 221 | Ruth (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 222 | Sans Famille | Wikipedia | |
| 223 | Sea of Glass | Wikipedia | |
| 224 | Shadow Jump (Cloak Games #4) | Jonathan Moeller | Goodreads |
| 225 | Sharpe (novel series) | Wikipedia | |
| 226 | Shatter Stone (Cloak Games, #5) | Jonathan Moeller | Goodreads |
| 227 | Silas Marner | George Eliot | Goodreads |
| 228 | Sisters | Judith Caseley | Life Song |
| 229 | Splendors and Glooms | Laura Amy Schlitz | Goodreads |
| 230 | Stormbreaker | Anthony Horowitz | The Guardian |
| 231 | Superman novels | Wikipedia | |
| 232 | Tell Me Again About the Night I Was Born | Jamie Lee Curtis | Life Song |
| 233 | Ten Days and Nine Nights: An Adoption Story | Yumi Heo | Life Song |
| 234 | The 39 Clues series | Various Authors | Kids World |
| 235 | The Adventurer (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 236 | The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn | Mark Twain | Goodreads |
| 237 | The Adventures of James Bond Junior 003½ | Wikipedia | |
| 238 | The Adventures of Tom Sawyer | Mark Twain | Goodreads |
| 239 | The Animal Family | Wikipedia | |
| 240 | The Apple Dumpling Gang | Wikipedia | |
| 241 | The Bad Beginning (A Series of Unfortunate Events, #1) | Lemony Snicket | Goodreads |
| 242 | The BFG | Roald Dahl | The Guardian |
| 243 | The Bloody Sun | Wikipedia | |
| 244 | The Book of Three (The Chronicles of Prydain, #1) | Lloyd Alexander | Goodreads |
| 245 | The Brave Adventures of Lapitch | Wikipedia | |
| 246 | The Cement Garden | Wikipedia | |
| 247 | The Chronicles of Prydain | Wikipedia | |
| 248 | The Cider House Rules | Wikipedia | |
| 249 | The Contender (Lipsyte novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 250 | The Dangerous Days of Daniel X | Wikipedia | |
| 251 | The Daring Twins | Wikipedia | |
| 252 | The Day We Met You | Phoebe Koehler | Life Song |
| 253 | The Death of the Heart | Wikipedia | |
| 254 | The Diamond of Drury Lane | Wikipedia | |
| 255 | The Diddakoi | Wikipedia | |
| 256 | The Dragon’s Familiar | Wikipedia | |
| 257 | The Dressmaker (Bainbridge novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 258 | The Dwarves (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 259 | The Eye of Zoltar (The Last Dragonslayer, #3) | Jasper Fforde | Goodreads |
| 260 | The Fall of the Imam | Wikipedia | |
| 261 | The Fires of Spring | Wikipedia | |
| 262 | The Fish Can Sing | Wikipedia | |
| 263 | The Gift (Douglas novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 264 | The Girl With All the Gifts (The Girl With All the Gifts, #1) | M.R. Carey | Goodreads |
| 265 | The Goblin Emperor (The Goblin Emperor, #1) | Katherine Addison | Goodreads |
| 266 | The Golden Goblet | Wikipedia | |
| 267 | The Good Thief (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 268 | The Grass Harp | Wikipedia | |
| 269 | The Green Years | Wikipedia | |
| 270 | The Guardians (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 271 | The Heaven Shop | Wikipedia | |
| 272 | The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber | Wikipedia | |
| 273 | The Highwayman (novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 274 | The House of Mirth | Creative Cache | |
| 275 | The Intern | Macmillan | |
| 276 | The Invention of Hugo Cabret | Wikipedia | |
| 277 | The Jumping-Off Place | Wikipedia | |
| 278 | The Keeper of the Isis Light | Wikipedia | |
| 279 | The King’s Daughter | Wikipedia | |
| 280 | The Last Dragonslayer (The Last Dragonslayer, #1) | Jasper Fforde | Goodreads |
| 281 | The Last of the Spirits | Chris Priestley | Goodreads |
| 282 | The Life Before Us | Wikipedia | |
| 283 | The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, #1) | Rick Riordan | Goodreads |
| 284 | The Little Girl Who Was Too Fond of Matches | Wikipedia | |
| 285 | The Loner (children’s novel) | Wikipedia | |
| 286 | The Maze of Bones | Wikipedia | |
| 287 | The Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg | Wikipedia | |
| 288 | The Mystery of the Clockwork Sparrow | Wikipedia | |
| 289 | The Mystery of the Jewelled Moth | Wikipedia | |
| 290 | The Nargun and the Stars | Wikipedia | |
| 291 | The Nowhere Man | Macmillan | |
| 292 | The Old Curiosity Shop | Wikipedia | |
| 293 | The Orphan of Ellis Island | Wikipedia | |
| 294 | The Orphan of the Rhine | Wikipedia | |
| 295 | The Orphan Queen | Wikipedia | |
| 296 | The Orphan’s Tales | Wikipedia | |
| 297 | The Orphans series | Wikipedia | |
| 298 | The Outsiders of Uskoken Castle | Wikipedia | |
| 299 | The Palace of Laughter | Wikipedia | |
| 300 | The Path to the Nest of Spiders | Wikipedia | |
| 301 | The Physician | Wikipedia | |
| 302 | The Queen of Attolia (The Queen’s Thief, #2) | Megan Whalen Turner | Goodreads |
| 303 | The Red Blanket | Eliza Thomas | Life Song |
| 304 | The Red Queen’s Daughter | Jacqueline Kolosov | Goodreads |
| 305 | The Return of the Condor Heroes | Wikipedia | |
| 306 | The Root Cellar | Wikipedia | |
| 307 | The Ruby in the Smoke | Wikipedia | |
| 308 | The Scarecrow and his Servant | Wikipedia | |
| 309 | The Series of Unfortunate Events | Lemony Snicket | Kids World |
| 310 | The Song of the Quarkbeast (The Last Dragonslayer, #2) | Jasper Fforde | Goodreads |
| 311 | The Stolen One | Suzanne Crowley | Goodreads |
| 312 | The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry | Gabrielle Zevin | Goodreads |
| 313 | The Story I’ll Tell | Nancy Tupper Ling | Life Song |
| 314 | The Thief (The Queen’s Thief, #1) | Megan Whalen Turner | Goodreads |
| 315 | The Thief Lord | Cornelia Funke | Kids World |
| 316 | The Third Witch | Rebecca Reisert | Goodreads |
| 317 | The Wanderess | Roman Payne | Goodreads |
| 318 | The Whitby Witches (The Whitby Witches, #1) | Robin Jarvis | Goodreads |
| 319 | The Witch of Blackbird Pond | Elizabeth George Speare | Goodreads |
| 320 | The Witches | Roald Dahl | Goodreads |
| 321 | The Wolves of Willoughby Chase (The Wolves Chronicles, #1) | Joan Aiken | Goodreads |
| 322 | The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (Oz, #1) | L. Frank Baum | Goodreads |
| 323 | The Wonderling | Mira Bartok | Goodreads |
| 324 | Thief Trap (Cloak Games, #1) | Jonathan Moeller | Goodreads |
| 325 | Thief! (The Queen’s Thief, #0.5) | Megan Whalen Turner | Goodreads |
| 326 | Understood Betsy | Dorothy Canfield Fisher | Goodreads |
| 327 | Villette | Charlotte Brontë | Goodreads |
| 328 | Waiting for May | Janet Morgan Stoeke | Life Song |
| 329 | We Belong Together | Todd Parr | Life Song |
| 330 | Welcome Home Little Baby | Lisa Harper | Life Song |
| 331 | Welcome Home, Forever Child | Christine Mitchell | Life Song |
| 332 | Wither (The Chemical Garden, #1) | Lauren DeStefano | Goodreads |
| 333 | Yes, I’m Adopted! | Sharlie Zinniger | Life Song |
| Source | Article |
| Barnes And Noble | Our Favorite Fictional Orphans |
| Creative Cache | Six Great Books about Orphans |
| Goodreads | Best Books About Orphans |
| Kids World | Tween and Teen Books about Orphans |
| Life Song | 25 Kids Books About Adoption |
| Macmillan | Macmillan: Series: Orphan X |
| Powells | The Frankly Bizarre Magic of Children’s Books About Orphans |
| The Guardian | Katherine Rundell’s top 10 orphans |
| Wikipedia | Category:Novels about orphans |
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