Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules (by Jeff Kinney)

A worthy follow-up to the first book Diary of a Wimpy Kid, RODRICK RULES gives us more of Greg's funny take on the world around him through his comics-laced journal. Greg's in more scrapes this time around, and worse than that, his bully brother Rodrick knows one of Greg's secrets that could definitely get him into trouble and threatens to tell the world. Here comes the brotherly blackmail (and a great topic for parent-kid discussions).

The cartoons that go along with Greg's journal entries are hilarious. Bestselling author Jeff Kinney does a great job portraying the hazardous environment of middle school and of showing us a relatable kid whose full of foibles -- while he's very likeable he can be sarcastic, snarky, and occasionally pretty mean to his friends. The situations Greg finds himself are both familiar and embarrassing. While Greg likes to think he's the victim of misunderstandings, like when he promises to be honest and takes it too far, the majority of the time he gets what he deserves.