children's book review: Diary of Wimpy Kid #3 - The Last Straw by Jeff Kinney

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I've really enjoyed the first two books in Jeff Kinney's hilarious Diary of a Wimpy Kid series. The third is more of the same. Honestly, the books are starting to run together for me at this point, which is not necessarily a bad thing. There is an overarching problem and resolution in each book, but for the most part, the books are all collections of funny stories. To some extent, the stories could be mixed and matched within the books. It's a joy to have a series of books that don't rely on what came before them. (I love books in a series, and I grew up on Sweet Valley Twins, Baby-Sitters Club, Fantastic Five, Sleepover Friends, etc., but I would never dream of reading them out of order. Harry Potter beautifully builds on past actions; you can't read them out of order.) Parents, teachers, independent booksellers and librarians can hand a child, even a reluctant reader, a Wimpy Kid book, and it won't really matter which one it is. It's a fantastic, hilarious series. It encourages children to read, write and draw. There are some smart jokes, and there are some low-brow jokes, but it still works.

Rating: 4 stars (out of 5)
Pages: 224 pages
Publication: Spring 2009
Source: my local public library

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