Sunday, January 23, 2011

Diary of a Wimpy Kid - The Ugly Truth

So, what was the release date of this book? November 9th or something?  Well, it left our shelf on that day and didn't come back until Friday.  I snagged it and used a couple of commutes to get it read so that I can put it on the shelf to disappear for the next 3 months!

Greg and Rowley are on the outs.  Greg is considering his options for new friends, but he has to face the fact that they are few and far between.  Christopher Brownfield is more of a summer friend (he's really great for keeping mosquitos away!) and Tyson Sanders has a bathroom habit that's hard overlook.

More is changing in Greg's life than just his body (a fact that he can't avoid thanks to  his teacher insisting showers happen after PE and his mother giving him an embarrassing puberty book).  His mother has decided to go back to school.  Since she is not around so much, Greg, his brothers and father are left to fend for themselves for dinner, cleaning and getting ready for school often to disasterous results, as you can imagine.

One of the best segments in the book happens when the school has a lock-in sleep over.  After all of the games and cellphones are confiscated, the fun begins with ice-breaker games, too many chaperones and an incident involving body parts and polaroid cameras! 

There were fewer laugh-out-loud moments in this installment, and Greg isn't really growing too much as a character, however, tweens are still eating up the series.  The vignette style means that readers generally will recognize their lives in the book somewhere, whether it's having to take care of an egg for health class, being locked in at school for a sleepover, or having a parent who goes back to work.  The stories are solidly in tween territory now with issues of friendship, puberty, family and the search for self swirling through the pages.

4 comments:

Ms. Yingling said...

We have five copies in the library even though we sold 50 copies at our book fair, and I still haven't been able to read it, either!

Kate Coombs said...

Haven't read this one yet--thanks for the review! A sleepover; that sounds rife for comedy. Secretly, my favorite character is Greg's little brother.

leslie said...

the daughter is on her second read through. when asked, she doesn't like it as much as the others, but she does like it. I only asked because usually she is laughing out loud and showing me so I can laugh too. will have to take a look just the same, before it goes back and we end up on a Hold List

~L

Stasia D said...

I'm waiting for Manny to break out, Kate. I'm sure he has something up his sleeve! Ms. Y, I will be interested in what you think. Leslie, the kids at school haven't given me the run down, but I think they are probably in the same camp as your daughter. (I am surprised at all of the 6 year olds carrying it around...don't think they'd really get the humor, myself).