Books like Going Bovine by Libba Bray
Cameron, a typical teenage boy, dreams only of getting through high school and life with minimal effort. His world shatters when he discovers he is terminally ill. Facing death, he is approached by a loopy, winged angel named Dulcie, who claims there is a cure if he will seek it.
With the help of a death‑obsessed dwarf who loves video games and a mischievous yard gnome, Cameron sets out on an adventurous road trip across a twisted America. Their journey takes them to the heart of what truly matters, bringing humor, hope, and a renewed sense of purpose to a boy who had resigned himself to doing nothing.
"Going Bovine" blends humor, adventure, and a poignant look at young people with serious illness, offering a fresh take on the coming‑of‑age story with unique characters and an unconventional quest for salvation.
First publish date: 2009
Genre: Young Adult Fiction/YA Contemporary Fiction
Authors: Libba Bray
★
★
★
★
★
4.0 (5 community ratings)
How are these books recommended?
The books recommended for Going Bovine by Libba Bray are shaped by reader interaction. Votes on how closely books relate, user ratings, and community comments all help refine these recommendations and highlight books readers genuinely find similar in theme, ideas, and overall reading experience.
Have you read any of these books?
Your votes, ratings, and comments help improve recommendations and make it easier
for other readers to discover books they’ll enjoy.
Books similar to Going Bovine (21 similar books)
A boy with broken memory wakes in a stone‑walled maze, where he meets other children who call it the Glade. When the first girl arrives, secrets about survival, cooperation, and the maze’s mystery begin to surface.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
During World War II, a foster girl in Nazi Germany steals books to share with neighbors and a hidden Jewish man, proving literature’s power to nourish the soul amid darkness.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
At Culver Creek Boarding School, Miles "Pudge" Halter leaves his uneventful home life to find adventure, only to be drawn into the complex world of Alaska Young – a brilliant, enigmatic student whose presence challenges and changes him forever.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
A coming‑of‑age epistolary novel that follows introverted teen Charlie through his freshman year in a 1990s Pittsburgh suburb as he navigates high school, friendship and the challenges of adolescence.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
When Clay Jenkins discovers 13 tapes left by his classmate Hannah Baker, who recently committed suicide, he must confront the 13 reasons that drove her to end her life—one of which is him.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Ari, a fifteen‑year‑old Mexican‑American with a brother in prison, meets Dante and a friendship sparks that forces him to confront his identity, family, and sexuality.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
In a future Earth crowded with humans and androids, cyborg mechanic Cinder, a second‑class citizen, must uncover her hidden past to protect a planet threatened by plague and an alien threat, all while navigating a forbidden romance with Prince Kai.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Thomas, distrustful of Wicked, must guide the Gladers to finish the Flare cure after their memories are fully restored. With the Trials behind them, the truth about the vaccine—and the danger it holds—unfolds.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Colin Singleton, a washed‑up child prodigy obsessed with naming patterns, embarks on a cross‑country road trip to prove his "Theorem of Underlying Katherine Predictability" and finally win a girl.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Seventeen‑year‑old Mia faces a life‑altering medical crisis after a family car crash—she must decide whether to live a new life in the present or return to her former world as a coma patient.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Junior, a budding cartoonist from the Spokane Indian Reservation, transfers to an all‑white farm‑town high school, where the only other Indian is the school mascot.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
A heart-wrenching tale of forbidden love, survival, and the consequences of The Program in a bleak future world where teen suicide is a global epidemic.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
In the eighth House of Night book, Zoey Redbird faces new challenges on the Isle of Skye while her former High Priestess Neferet seeks vengeance. Tension rises as friendships, love, and supernatural loyalties collide.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Laia, a Scholar, infiltrates the Martial Empire’s elite military academy as a slave after her brother is jailed for treason, aided by rebel Scholars who promise to save him.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Armpit, a young man with cerebral palsy, struggles to rebuild his life in Austin after leaving Camp Green Lake, finding hope in a friendship with a disabled boy named Ginny while confronting the past that lingers.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Cassia and Ky chase the elusive Rising after leaving Society, displaying undercover and aerial adventure, while Xander hides a vital secret that threatens to disrupt their fragile unity.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
At fourteen, Nick Gautier’s ordinary life is turned upside down when he is rescued by a fierce warrior and pulled into the world of Dark-Hunters, fighting vampires, werewolves, zombies, and a demon—all while navigating high‑school drama.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
After a family tragedy, Leila embarks on a cross‑country road trip in her red car, meeting Hudson the mechanic, Bree the petty thief, Elliot the planner, and Sonia the teen, each drifting toward self‑discovery.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Punkzilla follows a fourteen‑year‑old runaway who kicks a meth habit and leaves Portland for Memphis to reconnect with his dying brother, meeting a colorful cast of characters on the road.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Seventeen‑year‑old Jean, who hides her cerebral palsy, confronts her identity while staying at a summer camp for children with disabilities.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Some Other Similar Books
Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn & David LevithanPlease Ignore Vera Dietz by A.S. King
Have a similar book in mind? Let others know!
Please login to submit books!