Common Sense Media Review
By Carrie R. Wheadon
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Extra helping of potty humor in 8th installment.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 8+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
Parent and Kid Reviews
Based on 7 parent reviews
Based on 22 kid reviews
Kids say this installment in the series maintains its humor and engaging plot, with Greg's misadventures revolving around jealousy and friendship dynamics. Many readers appreciate the consistency of the jokes and messages throughout the series, though some mention concerns over a lack of female characters and excessive potty humor.
- humor consistency
- engaging plot
- friendship themes
- mild language
- relatable characters
Summarized with AI
Summarized with AI
What's the Story?
Poor Greg. His one good friend, Rowley, has done the unthinkable. He's actually gotten a girlfriend. Now who will walk to school with him and carry his books while watching out for dog messes on the sidewalk? Greg will just have to find himself another sidekick. The only boy desperate enough to take him up on the offer is his bizarre neighbor Fregley, who drops all Greg's books on their first trip to school while running away from the scary Mingo brothers. And then it's Easter, and mom's quarreling sisters and daredevil cousins come to visit. When Greg finds a Magic Eight Ball, he thinks things are finally looking up. It helps him with all kinds of decisions, like which club to join to stay away from the Mingo brothers after school. But he's let his grades slip -- he has no books to study with -- and his science fair project is due next week. What's a Wimpy Kid to do?
Is It Any Good?
Hard Luck doesn't hold together as well as the other installments. Here's the true test of whether HARD LUCK is up your alley: Does the picture of Greg's dad getting tooted on by Grandma's dog send you into hysterical laughter, or do your eyes immediately roll skyward? If this prompts you to stop reading this review, the book is not for you. Is Jeff Kinney running out of gas/ideas? The quarreling-relatives storyline is a real low point; kids don't care about that stuff.
But there are always little redeeming moments, like all the things Greg finds in his mom's closet. Moms will like this mom with her parenting books and backup stuffed animals and the way she lays down the law to get Greg to bring up his grades but types his paper for him after he turns things around. Maybe that will sink in a little with kids once they're done laughing at the tooting dog.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the mega popularity of the Wimpy Kid series. What do kids love about it?
What do kids think of Greg? What do parents? Does he do anything in Hard Luck that you couldn't believe? Why do characters like Greg always seem as if they have one bad day after another?
Do you keep a journal? If so, how often do you write or draw in it? How can a journal be helpful?
Book Details
- Author :
- Illustrator : Jeff Kinney
- Genre : Humor
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : Amulet Books
- Publication date : November 5, 2013
- Publisher's recommended age(s) : 8 - 12
- Number of pages : 224
- Available on : Nook, Audiobook (unabridged), Hardback, Apple Books, Kindle
- Last updated : October 9, 2025
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