This Summer as a family we wanted to limit the amount of time our kids spend on electronics and encourage them to read more.  So we started reading the Diary of a Wimpy Kid book series as a family.  We have “story time” and everyone sits and listens to 1 person read.  It’s usually myself or one of my older kids.  I told the kids as we finish the books we’ll watch the movies.  Yesterday we finished the first book and watched the movie. The interesting part is-
We were able to pick out a lot of differences from the book and movie and talk about which we liked better.

One thing I’ve noticed with this book series is that Greg isn’t a very good friend.  He’s not only a wimp, but a coward, and desperate for attention.  Throughout the book we’ll stop and talk about the things he does and how we’re shocked that Rowley is even friends with him.  Or how ridiculous he makes himself look.

He does surprise the reader by doing something decent once in awhile though.  I’ve talked to my kids about how he is an example of what not to be like.

I do LOVE the way the books are written with all the comic style drawings.  It makes it a cross between a picture book and a chapter book.  It’s genius, and entertaining.

This morning I came across a non-profit group called Summer Book Challenge that actually PAYS kids 3rd-12th grades to read books and submit a book report! $20-50 per book!  My kids are pretty excited!  There’s a list of approved books.
To get more information email: SummerBookChallenge@yahoo.com