I don’t know about your kids, but my oldest son Oscar is a HUGE Diary of a Wimpy Kid fan.  I am a huge fan of the Wimpy Kid books because they came into our lives at a time when Oscar was pretty reluctant to read.  He was only interested in non fiction books about animals and science, which is great, but I wanted him to really get into the journey of reading a fictional book.  Diary of a Wimpy Kid helped stimulate that part of reading for him and I am so appreciative of that!  He has read all the books in the series thus far and he has been anxiously awaiting the newest release in the popular series, The Third Wheel, which hit bookstores on November 13th.  Oscar got his hands on it and finished reading it in two days!  I think that’s a record for him so it must be good!

About The Third Wheel

Love is in the air—but what does that mean for Greg Heffley?

A Valentine’s Day dance at Greg’s middle school has turned his world upside down. As Greg scrambles to find a date, he’s worried he’ll be left out in the cold on the big night. His best friend, Rowley, doesn’t have any prospects either, but that’s a small consolation.

An unexpected twist gives Greg a partner for the dance and leaves Rowley the odd man out. But a lot can happen in one night, and in the end, you never know who’s going to be lucky in love.

Interview With Author and Illustrator Jeff Kinney

On Wednesday night Jeff Kinney took a break from the start of his book tour to have chat with me, and his biggest fan Oscar, about The Third Wheel and all things Wimpy Kid.  It was great to chat with him and Oscar got a huge kick out of talking to his favorite author.

Of course I asked Jeff Kinney a few questions of my own!

Kimberly:  When you first created the stories on your website did you know that it would be something this big that would take off and be this popular?

Jeff:  I didn’t.  I thought the books were too strange to get published.  So I thought they were weird with the hand written font and the drawings, and I thought they were just too odd to have any chance at success.  So everything past the point of publication has been a huge shock to me.

Kimberly:  I think that its a really unique and definitely interesting viewpoint for a boy to keep a diary or a journal to mark those exciting events in life – or tribulations – whatever the case may be!

Jeff:  It’s a lot of fun to write that format because you don’t have to write a really strong narrative, you can keep it really loose.

Kimberly:  We saw pictures of your awesome tour bus on Twitter.  Do you like connecting with your fans on Twitter?

Jeff:  Actually I don’t  you know because you really have to be 13 at least to be on Twitter and I’m not really trying to reach kids on Twitter.  If I post on Twitter it goes right to my homepage, WimpyKid.com, so that I do like.  That’s powerful, to be able to take a picture and have it be up online.  That’s really great.

Kimberly:  We haven’t read the new book yet but I’ve read the synopsis, and it looks like Greg is going to a dance?  And it looks like Rowley is going to be the third wheel there?

Jeff:  Yeah I think we’ve all been there where you like a girl, or a girl likes a boy – however it works out, and a friend gets left out in the cold.  So in this book I wanted Greg to go to the dance as a group of friends with Rowley and this girl and for one of the boys being left behind.

So there you have it!  Some inside scoop on the new book, The Third Wheel, and all things Wimpy straight from Jeff Kinney himself!  Jeff was so nice to speak with and right away he thanked Oscar for being a fan of the books.  He was so great about talking to Oscar and answering his questions too.  It really made Oscar feel like a big star to have this opportunity and it was really nice to see how wonderful Jeff interacts with his young fans.

For more information about The Wimpy Kid series of books please visit www.WimpyKid.com.

Buy It!

Where to Buy

Diary of a Wimpy Kid books are available wherever books and e-books are sold.

MSRP: $13.95

About Wimp-E-Books

Books 1-7 in the bestselling Diary of a Wimpy Kid series are now available for download as Wimp-E-Books wherever e-Books are sold.  Wimp-E-Books carry their own name and logo.  Author and illustrator Jeff Kinney was involved in all aspects of the transformation of the Wimpy Kid books into e-book form.  Says Kinney, “It was important to me to make sure the books look just as good on the screen as they do on paper. I’m thrilled at the way the books look on e-readers, tablets, and other devices, and I hope fans enjoy having them in digital format as much as they’ve enjoyed them as books.”

Win It!

One lucky Pretty Pink Momma reader will win their choice of a Wimpy Kid book 1-7!

Entry is super simple via the Rafflecopter widget below.  For the mandatory entry please leave a comment on this post telling me which one of the seven books you would like sent to you if chosen as the winner.

1. Diary of a Wimpy Kid
2. Diary of a Wimpy Kid Rodrick Rules
3. Diary of a Wimpy Kid The Last Straw
4. Diary of a Wimpy Kid Dog Days
5. Diary of a Wimpy Kid The Ugly Truth
6. Diary of a Wimpy Kid Cabin Fever
7. Diary of a Wimpy Kid The Third Wheel

Be sure to also check off on the Rafflecopter widget that you commented on the post or your entry won’t be counted.  Also there are some super easy extra entry options you don’t want to miss out on either!

Good luck

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I received a copy of Diary of a Wimpy Kid The Third Wheel to help facilitate the interview process and this post.