Books like My Near-Death Adventures (99% True!) — picked by fans

I love a book that makes me laugh out loud, and this book did that many times!

Despite the serious underlying topic of eco preservation, this story is truly funny, with so many unexpected twists. There's not just alligators, burrowing owls, and poisonous snakes!

The main character, Roy Eberhardt, is the kind of person anyone would be lucky to have as a friend. And Beatrice and her step-brother are also both characters I cheered for. 

You can’t help but root for thirteen-year-old social underdog and theater nerd Nate Foster as he sneaks away from his “boring” hometown of Jankburg, PA, and takes a bus to New York City to audition for the lead role in a Broadway production of E.T., the Musical. Of course, things don’t go according to plan, but Nate’s spunk, humor, and fearlessness somehow get him through his longshot adventure in the big city. Federle’s warm and vivid characterizations and witty writing style make this one a winner for the whole family. (One caveat: Parents bothered by gay themes in middle-grade books—even understated ones, as here—might want to skip this one. Your loss.) Followed by two more: Fix, Six, Seven, Nate! and Nate Expectations. 

For those who prefer their humor British, this fantasy adventure will more than fill the bill. Eleven-year-old Tom Harding thought he was just a normal kid, but he wakes up one day to discover that his parents are in hiding from evildoers in an alternate world called the Realm—and to top it off, he learns his dad is a magical fairy and he himself is a demisprite, or half fairy, of which he had no clue. Aided by his klutzy cousin Pindar, a trio of bickering fairy godmothers, and an assortment of goofy, otherworldly creatures and characters, Tom sets out on the magical adventure of his life to rescue Mum and Dad. The action is fast and fun and the humor is nonstop, with lots of understated Britishisms like “When you’ve just been told you might be about to disintegrate, it’s hard to concentrate on anything else.” And, of course,… show more.

“Of all the kids in the seventh grade at Camillo Junior High, there was one kid that Mrs. Baker hated with heat whiter than the sun. Me.”

When I read that first line, I assumed The Wednesday Wars was going to be another shallow story with the typical conflict between a mean teacher and a student victim. But I was wrong. Completely wrong.

The Wednesday Wars will make you smile a real smile, not a teacher smile. It will make you laugh as you learn Shakespearean curses. It will make you cry when a student earns the high praise of “chrysanthemum” from a teacher who is no longer an enemy but a friend. This won’t make sense until you read the book, and it’s definitely worth reading this book.

Detroit is where Charlene “Charlie” Mack runs a private detective business. Her life is as complex as the Motor City. Charlie struggles with her sexuality while caring for her ailing mother. A theft investigation leads Charlie and her team down to Birmingham, Alabama. Reading about Charlie’s exploits in Detroit rekindled memories of eating Ethiopian food in Detroit and taking the train from Michigan to Toronto, Canada. I lived in Montgomery, Alabama and remember visiting the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church. 

Can you imagine losing your entire family to a plane accident? That’s what the heroine of this first-in-a-series book by Colleen Coble has to deal with.

With so many unanswered questions, Bree Nichols puts her K-9 search-and-rescue skills to work, looking for the bodies of her husband and son in the wilderness of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Having been widowed young, my heart went out to her from the start.

Working with Park Ranger Kade Mathews, Bree stumbles upon a terrible crime that may be linked to the plane crash. I think this book speaks to the importance of never giving up on faith and hope, even when everything looks absolutely bleak.

The best thing about Ms. Coble’s books is her character development. The pacing is less of a thriller than a cozy mystery with a good dose of romance. While lacking a military hero, I do like that there is… show more.

I’ll never forget this book because it put me front and center of a murder trial from the perspective of the victim’s family.

Imagine sitting in court and looking into the eyes of the man who killed your nearest and dearest. What would that feel like? How would I even begin to process that experience?

I found this story really opened a whole new perspective in the genre of true crime writing. 

I love that this story is set around cherry harvest. The description and storytelling were done in broad strokes of imagery. This story stayed with me because of the grief and longing one of the main character struggles with. Seeing through the perspective of the little girl was entertaining. All the characters had extraordinary personalities. I loved this book because it was a universal truth. Life is a hill with boulders of various sizes, set on fire, headed straight for you. Staying put is only going to get you knocked the F@#! Out.

This is a real battle of wills, between Dr. Viveca Lancaster, newly licensed physician, and Nate Grayson, manager of a newly-founded Michigan town in desperate need of a doctor. He hires her, sight unseen, and when she shows up, he tries to fire her, because he doesn’t want a female doctor, but Viveca is not having that. She’s going to prove herself, as one of the first Black women doctors in 1870s America, and Nate falls for her as a brilliant doctor as much as he does for her as a woman. It’s impossible to go wrong with a Beverly Jenkins book, but this one is extra delicious.

This was my first Jenkins Historical Romance and it was by no means the last. I confess I picked up the book because I was tickled that the title was my last name, but the story. Wow. It gripped me hard from the start. The historical setting is the American West of the 1870s and involves a couple who pretend to be married, for just one evening. The pretense ends in scandal and a real marriage to save their reputations, and the hero’s journey to love is deeply emotional. Some of Jenkins’s contemporary-set romances have been made into movies and I keep my fingers crossed that one day they’ll choose some of her historicals.