At a GlanceAbout Jeff KinneyThe following list was modified from Penguin Books Australia's "10 Things You Did Not Know About Jeff Kinney." Check out biographical sketches about Jeff Kinney in my reviews of Rodrick Rules and Diary of a Wimpy Kid.
From the Back of the Book"Let's face it: Greg Heffley will never change his wimpy ways. Somebody just needs to explain that to Greg's father. You see, Frank Heffley actually thinks he can get his son to toughen up, and he enlists Greg in organized sports and other "manly" endeavors. Of course, Greg is easily able to sidestep his father's efforts to change him. But when Greg's dad threatens to send him to military academy, Greg realizes he has to shape up ... or get shipped out." StrengthsA simple strength of The Last Straw is the simplicity of the text. Paragraphs do not exist in the series, so it explains why students struggle bridging the gap between reading these books and more difficult texts. The same could be said between grade expectations concerning writing a sentence or two and a paragraph or two. Regardless, I think the text simplicity helps new and struggling readers find confidence in their ability to read. Here are a few examples of how the simplicity makes the reading easier and still, successfully, advances the plot in an easy-to-understand way.
All examples allow the reader to get the gist of the story through short lines or small blocks of text that include two to three sentences. This way of writing allows for easy, understandable reading. WeaknessesOne of the biggest criticisms that the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series has from both myself and others is how Greg Heffley, the main character, is not a good example for upper elementary and middle school students to learn from. He is lazy, rude, a complainer, and never sees how he could be in the wrong. This weakness was rampant in the first two books of the series, but comes to a strong light in The Last Straw. I think the title shows that the people in Greg's life are fed up with his behavior, too, not just me. The opening diary entry is a great example. The story begins in the month of January directly after New Years when people are making New Years resolutions to improve themselves. Greg informs the reader: "...it's not easy for me to think of ways to improve myself, because I'm already pretty much one of the best people I know" (1). He continues with his resolution, which is "to try and help OTHER people improve" (1). It turns out that this resolution is impossible to keep because it is dependent upon others, and Greg throws in the towel anyway because of its difficulty. In the end, his mother tells him, which doesn't help the situation or his ego anyway, "'Everyone can't be as perfect as YOU, Gregory.'" His response to himself, "I think she's right" (4). Why would this type of behavior and belief in oneself be that of merit and honor? It's not. The little prick is the first to find the fault in others and point it out, but when others criticize him, its "poor little Greg" time. *Eye roll* Greg and his neighborhood friend Rowley bury a timeline later in the book. They throw in a few dollars and some video games to showcase their time period for future peoples. When Greg is in a bind because he has not had enough sugar, of all things, he got "desperate" and "dug up the time capsule" (75). We all know and despised the kid who peaked in the time capsule at school or found it a few years early and ruined the surprise for everyone. We hated that kid. Why don't we hate Greg Heffley? The only time that Greg did something positive with his quick wit and thinking skills was when the last straw happened - his father strongly threatened sending Greg to a military academy (about time). Greg "wanted to join the Boy Scouts" (164). Even though that meant that he was able to get out of soccer, another obligation and join the "cool" troop, we begin to see Greg motivated to do good things without regretting them in order to impress his father. This situation makes me believe that Greg may be improving overall, but we'll see as the series continues. Recommendation
Why Did I Read This Book?I am continuing to plan for my Red Cedar Writing Project Spartan Writing Camp session on creating your own Diary of a Wimpy Kid adventure. I am only 30% through the series, but I am starting to get comfortable with Kinney's style and purpose.
I am also able to count The Last Straw for the following reading challenges:
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After almost an entire school year of assessing students' reading, writing, and speaking, I have decided to assess this blog's rating system once more. Prior to the school year beginning, I made some changes to the rating system. At that time, they were more drastic than this change. I felt the use of pictures to be easier on the eyes with more of a straightforward approach to rating the books I read. When reviewing a book, I would show which row of books I was giving the bookI felt that the reader of the review would be unable to get a grasp of how many books were being used. Often, I, too, would ask myself, "So what does that mean?" or "How many Goodreads stars does that equate to?" My solution is the system below. Instead of the confusing row of books, pictures of books are used to measure how well I did or did not enjoy the book. The meaning of each rating has been slightly trimmed. For easy reference, you can now find the system on the righthand side, too, above the Archives. If you blog about books, what kind of system do you use?
What do you think of the changes to my system? Are they more helpful to understand the rating for a book? Comment below! |
The Avalanche of Books
As an educator and avid reader, I am constantly hearing about books. I feel like I am being chased by a giant, rolling avalanche of titles and authors. Rating System
5 books - New fave! Read it now!
4 books - Shelf worthy 3 books - Quality read, but ... 2 books - Borrow it 1 book - Skip it Archives
December 2017
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