Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Last Straw by Jeff KinneyThis book is the 3rd book in the Diary of a Wimpy Kid Series. The first book, Diary of a Wimpy Kid debuted in 2007. The second book, Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules was released in 2008. This third book, Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Last Straw was just released on January 13th. According to a Shelf Awareness newsletter: "Some 3,000 people attended Kinney's appearance that night at the Barnes & Noble in Carle Place, N.Y., on Long Island". In this slow retail market of book selling, it's great to see excitement over a book and books are selling!! This book sold 80,000 copies on the day it was released.
Why, do you wonder that I am sharing this with you? My 10 year old son loves this series. He thinks they are terribly funny and inhales the books when he has read them! I got him a copy of the 2nd book for Christmas this yearand he read it in 2 days. He would have finished it in a day except he started reading it late in the evening. He is so excited to get a copy of this 3rd book in the series. His teacher ordered a copy for the class. This week, it arrived and she had to draw names for the child who got to read it first. There was so much interest and excitement over reading this book! My son didn't get his name picked and was a good sport about it. He looks forward to reading the book soon. I just saw an ad in the paper that our local indie bookstore is having a weekend sale and we just may stop in and try to find a copy and give our business to a local bookstore. We hope to get there as soon as the weather warms up as it is currently 9 below zero with windchills at 20 to 30 below zero!! I plan to read the books as well so that I can understand the experience, they do look like fun books to read. I just love to see excitement and joy in a child over reading great books.
Some other details about this series:
- The series started off online at Funbrain.com in 2004. The author didn't plan to release the book on the internet but found the opportunity to reach millions of kids on Funbrain irresisitable. So, he published the book in the form of daily entries, much like a blog.
- All books are 224 pages. There are 2 more books in the series that will be published.
- Reading Level: 9-12 years old
- There is a movie version of the book being developed through Twentieth Century Fox and they are currently casting for the role of the main character, Greg. Details are on the Diary of a Wimpy Kid website. Check out the website for much more information.
Here is a neat sneak peak video to see how the 3rd book was printed. It's very interesting to see the process of how a book is printed.
I would love to hear your comments on any of these questions:- Have you or a child you know read this series and are they as excited as my son?
- What books have your children gotten excited about reading?
- Do you read the books that your children read? If so, which ones have you read and like or disliked?
This is such a great series. My young patrons tear through them in a day or two!
ReplyDeleteThanks! These are currently checked out in my local library. I put them on hold for my son. Thanks for the recommendation.
ReplyDeleteI don't have any kids, but Anna's daughter eats the stories up and when I pop over for a visit she reads passages to me. it's cute...I bought her the second one and the diary that she can write in...I know she is dying to read the third one.
ReplyDeleteI volunteer twice a year at the local elementary school library bookfair and these books fly off the shelves. We always have to reorder for the boys lined up to buy them.
ReplyDeleteThanks for visiting my blog and making a comment on my one year anniversary giveaway.
I have this book coming to me but it hasn't arrived yet.
ReplyDeleteMy son loves this series. He has all of them including the "do it yourself" journal which he got a real hoot out of.
The only down side is they take just a couple of hours ot go through.
I just read about this series recently, but have it marked as a good possibility for my niece! (even if it is sort of a "boy's" book)
ReplyDeleteHi Bonnie, thanks for stopping by to read People of the Book. I hope you enjoy it. Also, Pudgy and I want to thank you for the kind words about the penguin theme! :)
ReplyDelete* Have you or a child you know read this series and are they as excited as my son?
ReplyDeleteI can't keep these books on the shelf at my library. It is a "hold" only book and yes, they're as excited as your son!
* What books have your children gotten excited about reading?
My son and I both share a John Green obsession. He does write for the older teen though. Also Hunger Games was big for my son Marc. I have yet to read it but I will!!
* Do you read the books that your children read? If so, which ones have you read and like or disliked?
I certainly do. Both my boys have pretty good tastes and I end up enjoying what they read. My youngest is always open to my suggestions for him when his class comes into the library.
Great post!! Your son has great taste!!! My kids at school can't wait for this book. I ordered it through a company called Permabound so it takes a little longer for us to get our copies. They rebind them and guarantee the binding to last or else they replace it free!!! It's worth the wait!!
My son absolutely devoured the first two. He's thrilled about the third one, but he'll have to wait til the library gets it in! :)
ReplyDeleteStuart's currently on book #9 of the Droon series, he bouncing around the Magic Treehouse series, he read all of Encyclopedia Brown this summer, he's read a few Goosebumps books, he LOVES the Choose Your Own Adventure/Nightmare series, and he's currently reading aloud a chapter a night of an abridged version of The Jungle Book. He's a big reader, but really, NOT reading is NOT an option at my house! ;)
My daughter loves this series! She'll be reviewing the first one on my blog soon. She's almost done with the second, and I just bought her the third as an incentive to finish the second. LOL We got a great deal on the new book at Sam's Club. It was only $6.77!
ReplyDelete--Anna
Diary of an Eccentric