Common Sense Media Review
By Carrie R. Wheadon
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Silly scares for Wimpy Kid fans and some lessons too.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 8+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
Parent and Kid Reviews
What's the Story?
In ROWLEY JEFFERSON'S AWESOME FRIENDLY SPOOKY STORIES, BOOK 2, Rowley narrates twelve tales where boys turn into ladybugs and 3-D printed avatars, a man is cryogenically frozen for 100 years, a severed pinkie searches for its owner, the Grim Reaper goes on a date, a ghost develops a taste for cafeteria fish sticks, a girl zombie wows Hollywood, a boy with a mouth in his stomach braves the middle school locker room, a girl survives her great aunt's hugs, a sports fan comes back as a ghost to root for his favorite football team, the cast of A Christmas Carol haunts a house, and the new girl at school hosts monsters at her slumber party.
Is It Any Good?
In this more-silly-than-scary collection for Wimpy Kid fans and tween sci-fi devotees, hugs at family gatherings can be as dangerous as a flat tire on your bike in front of the cemetery. And the Grim Reaper, it turns out, had a wonderful childhood. And both a girl zombie and severed pinkie excel in school. The unexpected turns in each tale are sometimes really random (like that pinkie's advanced degree and rats taking over the planet), but it's always big fun. It's hard to say what's funnier, the picture of germaphobe Grim Reaper using his scythe to press buttons at the ATM or his dating profile glow-up where he looks like a Beatnik poet named "Reap." Maybe that joke was for the parents. Parents will also appreciate the last story about the young adult who lives at home gaming all day until he decides to live his life. If only he'd stayed away from that magic 3-D printer.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the story "The Extra" in Rowley Jefferson's Awesome Friendly Spooky Stories, Book 2. When Sylvia, the girl zombie, gets famous and looks online, what are people saying about her looks? What does she change about herself in response? What do people say afterward? Do you think it's common for celebrities to endure criticism no matter what? What would you do in Sylvia's position?
In "The Gamer," what is Trevor's life like? What's his video game avatar like? Why does it make him sad and what does he do about it?
Is there a story in here that really scared you or were they all more funny than scary? Which story is your favorite? Why?
Book Details
- Author :
- Illustrator : Jeff Kinney
- Genre : Graphic Novel
- Topics : Adventures , Aliens , Animals ( Bugs ) , Fantasy ( Ghosts , Monsters )
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : Harry N Abrams
- Publication date : August 11, 2026
- Publisher's recommended age(s) : 8 - 13
- Number of pages : 224
- Available on : Nook, Audiobook (unabridged), Hardback, Apple Books, Kindle
- Last updated : August 17, 2026
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