10 Books Like Diary of a Wimpy Kid
Diary of a Wimpy Kid works because it does something no teacher or parent can do: it makes a reluctant reader read 220 pages without being asked. Jeff Kinney figured out the formula. diary format, cartoon illustrations, short entries, a narrator who thinks exactly like a real kid. and now your child has finished all 18 books and is staring at the bookshelf like it betrayed them.
The question is what specifically hooked them, because that determines what to try next.
If they loved the diary format
Big Nate by Lincoln Peirce is the closest tonal match. Nate Wright is convinced he's destined for greatness despite all evidence. The novels mix prose with comic strips and doodles. Nate is more likable than Greg (he's oblivious rather than calculating) and the humor is warmer. Available as novels, comic compilations, and graphic novels.
Dork Diaries by Rachel Renée Russell is the girl counterpart. Nikki Maxwell documents middle school drama in diary format with drawings. She's more self-aware and emotionally intelligent than Greg, but the format is nearly identical. If your daughter loved Wimpy Kid, start here. If your son loved Wimpy Kid, still try it. the school dynamics are universal. 15+ books.
Tom Gates by Liz Pichon is the British equivalent that somehow hasn't broken through in the US the way it should have. Tom doodles, schemes, avoids homework, and annoys his sister. The humor is sillier and gentler than Wimpy Kid, and Liz Pichon's doodle-heavy pages are visually dense in a way kids love to pore over. 20+ books.
“The kid who loves Wimpy Kid isn't looking for a moral lesson. They're looking for another book that makes school feel survivable.
If they loved the school comedy
Middle School, The Worst Years of My Life by James Patterson follows Rafe Khatchadorian, who decides to break every rule in his school's code of conduct. The premise is similar to Wimpy Kid (kid vs. school system) but the tone is broader and the illustrations by Laura Park are more cartoonish. James Patterson's name moves books off shelves, which matters for the kid who needs someone else to tell them reading is cool. 13+ books.
Timmy Failure: Mistakes Were Made by Stephan Pastis is about a boy who runs a detective agency (Total Failure, Inc.) with his pet polar bear. Timmy is spectacularly incompetent and entirely unaware of it. Stephan Pastis (who draws the Pearls Before Swine comic strip) brings a cartoonist's timing to prose. The humor is more absurdist than Wimpy Kid. 7 books.
If they loved the reluctant reader format (fast, visual, low barrier)
The Last Kids on Earth by Max Brallier is Diary of a Wimpy Kid meets the zombie apocalypse. Jack Sullivan narrates his survival in the same sarcastic, self-aggrandizing voice as Greg Heffley, but the setting is post-apocalyptic and the action is constant. Douglas Holgate's illustrations are on nearly every page. Netflix series tie-in. 9 books.
Hatchet by Gary Paulsen is a complete tonal departure. no humor, no illustrations, just a 13-year-old boy surviving alone in the Canadian wilderness after a plane crash. I'm including it because it's the book that hooks the Wimpy Kid reader who's ready for something real. It's short (195 pages), the prose is clean, and the survival details are gripping. Many teachers use it as the bridge from comedy to literary fiction. Newbery Honor.
More to explore
More options: Max Crumbly (Rachel Renée Russell. Dork Diaries author, school setting with superhero twist), Stick Dog (Tom Watson. stick figure illustrations, dog comedy), I Funny (James Patterson. comedy competition theme), Awesome Friendly Kid (Jeff Kinney. Rowley's diary, same universe), Lola Levine Is Not Mean (Monica Brown. for younger readers ready for school stories)
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