Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules
by Jeff Kinney
Published by Amulet Books
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Reviewed by Connie Anderson
School’s starting again and Greg, Rodrick’s younger brother (a.k.a., The Wimpy Kid) is starting his journal. You can’t call it a diary because that’s ‘girlie.
Greg, through his alter ego, a.k.a. author Jeff Kinney, is following up his New York Times Best Selling Diary of a Wimpy Kid with a story where his brother “rules.” Created on wide lined paper with cartoon drawings throughout (some handsome; some not-so handsome, and the weird ones are easy to pick out).
This book has many possible markets: boys in this pre-teen age, their parents, men who want to reminisce how thrilled they are to have made it through junior high—and anyone else who wants to laugh out loud at the antics of this wimpy kid (your little brother, maybe?) Everyone who attended school can relate to him, some of us more so.
Before school journaling starts, Greg has to recount his summer, his friends and enemies—and he has lots of them. But then the first day of school starts with Greg’s biggest fear is that the stupid thing he did in summer that ONLY brother Rodrick knows about, will be spread around school—the kiss of death.
Here are some of the common themes that I am sure are played out in families worldwide, as our siblings toughen us up for surviving life:
• Older siblings that taunt and blackmail you, and young ones who tell on you.
• Name calling and ugly nicknames.
• Older sibling’s poor educational reputation passes down to you.
• Praying for school to be cancelled by weather because you don’t have your report done.
• Dad/Mom ‘helping’ with a report so you get a good grade—and maybe better than they ever got.
• Stupid things boys say/do that other boys think is cool–and girls hate.
• Your worst fear coming true, or not being as bad as you thought.
Near the end (p. 211) the book says, “So that just proves once and for all that Mom doesn’t understand a THING about kids my age.” Boy, isn’t that the truth!
From the cover to the last page, author/cartoonist Kinney has captured our families and given us some deep and joyful laughs (especially if we and our kids survived that time). Kinney is an online game developer and designer when he isn’t Greg’s alter ego.
Armchair Interview says: Kids of all ages will enjoy this. Read the first book, too, and anticipate Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Last Straw.
Author’s Web site: http://www.WimpyKid.com