Novels

• The Sign of the Chrysanthemum, 1973.
• Of Nightingales That Weep, 1974.
• The Master Puppeteer, 1975.
• Bridge to Terabithia, 1977.
• The Great Gilly Hopkins, 1978.
• Jacob Have I Loved, 1980.
• Rebels of the Heavenly Kingdom, 1983.
• Come Sing, Jimmy Jo, 1985.
• Park's Quest, 1988.
• Lyddie, 1991.
• Flip-Flop Girl, 1994.
• Jip, His Story, 1996.
• Parzival: The Quest of the Grail Knight, 1998.
• Preacher’s Boy, 1999.
• The Same Stuff as Stars, 2002.
• Bread and Roses, Too, 2006.
• The Day of the Pelican, 2009.
• My Brigadista Year, 2017.

Picture books

• The Angel and the Donkey, 1996.
• The King's Equal, 1996.
• Celia and the Sweet, Sweet Water, 1998.
• The Tale of the Mandarin Ducks (Illustrated by Leo and Diane Dillon), 1990.
• The Wide-Awake Princess, 2000.
• Blueberries for the Queen, 2004.
• Brother Sun, Sister Moon: Saint Francis of Assisi's Canticle of the Creatures, 2011.

I-can-read books

• The Field of the Dogs, 2001.
• Marvin One Too Many, 2001.
• Marvin’s Best Christmas Present Ever, 1997.
• The Smallest Cow in the World, 1991.

Translations

Japanese

• The Crane Wife by Sumiko Yagawa, 1981.
• The Tongue-Cut Sparrow by Momoko Ishii, 1987.

Russian

• The Great Gilly Hopkins by Lur'e, 1982.
• Jacob have I Loved by Natalia Trauberg, 2001.
• Bridge to Terabithia by Natalia Trauberg, 2003.

Non-fiction

• Gates of Excellence: On Reading and Writing Books for Children, 1981.
• Consider the Lilies: Plants of the Bible, 1986.
• The Spying Heart: More Thoughts on Reading and Writing Books for Children, 1989.
• Who Am I?, 1992.
• A Sense of Wonder: On Reading and Writing Books for Children, 1995 (combined text of Gates of Excellence, and The Spying Heart)
• The Invisible Child: On Reading and Writing Books for Children, 2001.

Christmas short story collections

• Angels & Other Strangers: Family Christmas Stories, 1979.
• A Midnight Clear: Twelve Family Stories for the Christmas Season, 1995.
• Star of Night: Stories for Christmas, 1980.