Neither The Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book nor Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Do-It-Yourself Book is one of the books in the popular, and very funny, Diary of a Wimpy Kid series by Jeff Kinney. Instead, these DIY Wimpy Kid books are for all those tweens and young teens who, inspired by the series, have thought about keeping a journal, but haven't done it yet. While the title of the first DIY book says, "Diary," young writers are warned, "Whatever you do, just make sure you don't write down your 'feelings' in here. Because one thing's for sure: This is NOT a diary."
The Format of the Two Wimpy Kid DIY Books
The artwork and design, the humor, and the tone of The Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book and the Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Do-It-Yourself Book all reflect those found in the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series: Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules, Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Last Straw, Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days and Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Ugly Truth. Like the series, this book has lined pages like a real diary or journal would and includes cartoon drawings like the ones created by the main character in the series, middle school student Greg Heffley.The Contents of the Two Wimpy Kid DIY Books
The first part of the books is filled with writing and drawing prompts, including questions to answer, lists to complete, and comic strips to finish. In both books, the final section is to be used "to keep a daily journal, write a novel, draw comic strips, or tell your life story." Each page of this section is lined and contains one small drawing at the bottom, leaving lots of space for your tween (8-12 years old) or teen to write and illustrate the remaining pages in the book.
Revised and expanded edition, published in 2011
AbramsThe expanded Content in The Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book
It's not just the titles and the covers of the two Wimpy Kid DIY books that are different. While both the Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Do-It-Yourself Book and The Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book are 224 pages long, more than 60 of those pages are new in The Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book. There are 32 pages of full-color comics and 16 of them are brand-new. In all, there are also 400 black and white illustrations.The Two Books: My Recommendation
I recommend the Wimpy Kid DIY books for fans of the series, generally middle school students and a lot of fourth and fifth graders. I also recommend them for kids who might enjoy the opportunity to draw comics and/or write about their lives. Because the writing and drawing prompts are humorous and fun, tweens and young teens will find them appealing. Hopefully, by the time they finish them, they will be eager to fill the remaining pages of the book with their own comics and writing.If your kids have already enjoyed the Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Do-It-Yourself Book, there should be sufficient new content in The Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book for it to appeal to them also. If this will be their first Wimpy Kid DIY book, I would buy The Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book because of all of the additional activity pages and color comics.
Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Do-It-Yourself Book (Amulet Books, An Imprint of Harry N. Abrams, Inc. 2008. ISBN: 9780810979772) Compare prices.
The Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book (Amulet Books, An Imprint of Harry N. Abrams, Inc. 2011. ISBN: 9780810989955) Compare prices.
