Diary of a Wimpy Kid - Rodrick Rules Giveaway Prize Pack! {CLOSED}

If you have a tween or a teenager then you’ve probably heard of Diary of a Wimpy Kid. Through comical illustrations and a well-written witty story, Jeff Kinney won the hearts and minds of children worldwide. I had never seen my son Cody so actively want to read until he stumbled upon this series. It was these books that truly sparked his love of reading, in my opinion. I was honored to be one of ten bloggers given the opportunity to have a group interview with Jeff Kinney regarding the release of the second film in the series, Diary of a Wimpy Kid – Rodrick Rules set to debut on March 25^th, 2011. 

Outnumbered 3-1:  In the story, Greg, although he's wimpy and nerdy, he's still endued with a sense of self and courage through his wit. Many middle school boys look at Greg as a bit of a hero, my son Cody and my nephew Austin included.  So, I wanted to know what advice you could give these middle school boys in regards to bullying as the character Greg?

Mr. Jeff Kinney:  First of all, thank you to everyone who's come here today.  This is my first time doing this kind of a thing, and I've gone to all of your websites, and I'm just really blown away by the design and the content.  I work for Family Education Network as part of my day job, and so I’m in envy of the stuff I see there.

To answer your question, what I wasn't aware of in the cultural middle school kids these days is that there's this huge culture of secrecy in that the worst thing you can be is a snitch.  And what I always tell kids is that silence is the bully's friend.

As far as self worth goes, I always tell kids that nobody really looks back on their middle school years fondly and wishes they could be back in middle school.  I always tell them that they just need to survive this period, and then things will get much better progressively through high school and into adulthood.

In the second installment of the series the main character, Greg Heffley, is forced by his Mother to try and build a better relationship with his heavy-metal, lazy, partially-uneducated brother Rodrick. It begins where Diary of a Wimpy Kid ended where Greg returns to school with the The Cheese Touch; something akin to cooties given when touching an old moldy piece of cheese. 

Blogger:  First, Jeff, I have two boys right in the main demographic for Wimpy Kid, so I decided to turn the questions over to them since they are huge fans. They were wondering, did you have a Rodrick type sibling in your life growing up?

Mr. Jeff Kinney:  I think that anybody who grows up with a teenager in their house knows what it's like to live with a Rodrick.  I have an older brother, a younger brother and an older sister.  At various points in our life, we've all been at the Rodrick, and we've all been the Manny.

What Rodrick does have in common with my older brother is that they both play the drums in a band. Luckily, we've all survived childhood and we all get along.

Even though I am older than the general mass of fans Jeff Kinney is accustomed to, the story of Diary of a Wimpy Kid – Rodrick Rules had me laughing till the end. I can imagine my son in these situations and it only heightened the amusement of the books when realizing that some of these geeky, often times quirky moments were created from memories Jeff Kinney had as a child. We all have our embarrassing situations but perhaps not as strange as wrapping oneself in toilet paper to fend off hypothermia. 

Blogger:  Jeff, what is the wimpiest thing you've ever done?

Mr. Jeff Kinney:  The wimpiest thing I've ever done is documented in the second book and in the second movie, which is that I was on the swim team and I didn't want to practice.  And so, every day, I'd ask my coach in the first few minutes of practice if I could go to the bathroom.  I would go into the bathroom, freeze my tail off and wrap myself in toilet paper to prevent hypothermia.

Jeff Kinney is not only an amazing writer/illustrator and game developer; he is also a kind man who truly seeks out to widen the horizons of children everywhere. His character Greg Heffley can be seen as a menace to parents or a hero to kids but either way he is one of the most amusing characters in children’s literature. 

Blogger:  How do you respond to the parents that might say that Greg isn't necessarily the kid I want my children to hang out with, even in literary form?

Mr. Jeff Kinney: I've tried to create this character that is funny because he's imperfect.  And I know that might sound like a copout.

For somebody to say that Greg is a bad kid or a rude kid, I don't quite agree with that.  I would say that he's flawed. He's a kid whose life is being documented at a time that nobody would want their life documented.

I've come to find is that kids have certain sophistication in the way that they read these books. They don't see Greg as a role model, but they might share his point of view from time to time.

For example, as a kid I was not overly fond of the idea of having to take an open shower with my classmates after gym.  So I used Greg as a megaphone to express that sentiment.

I don't think that's a bad thing.  Perhaps, it's a negative feeling that Greg has, but I don't think it's unreasonable in any sort of way.

Every so often, Greg will throw his best friend under the bus, but that's what people do.

Somebody recently said to me that kid’s see Bart Simpson and they know not to act like Bart Simpson. If they did, everybody would be saying, "Don't have a cow, man," and stuff like that.

We need to trust our kids to know the difference.  Mark Twain, for example, wrote about these characters, Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer who were not model citizens.  But he trusted his readers to figure it out for themselves.

I feel that if my books create dialog between the parents and their kids, that that's a good thing, or kids and their teachers.

Some people take it a little too far by saying that Greg is sort of a corrupting influence.  I don't see it in that way.

Greg Heffley and his big brother Rodrick were brought to life in March of 2010 in theaters everywhere with Diary of a Wimpy Kid – The Movie. Now a year later we will get to go back and see Greg try to establish a relationship with his bully of a brother while navigating the hazards of middle school, but most importantly… to try to keep his secret safe in Diary of a Wimpy Kid – Rodrick Rules. 

Outnumbered 3-1:  My son looks at me like Greg’s Mom in your stories. Is your idea of the parents a generality of what other kids see parents as or how you had seen your parents?

Mr. Jeff Kinney:  The well meaning mom is a great archetype because she loves her kids but is sort of very eager to connect, and sometimes misses a key component.

For example, I was reading the Washington Post a few months ago, and I saw an article that said, mother son book club sure to be a hit.  And to me, that's like comic gold.  You can't really get any better than that, because of course, the mothers organize this, and they have the best intentions for their kids.

I had some fun with that in my own books where I have mom creates the Reading is Fun Club and the boys all bring in their ideas on what legitimate reading in, which is a video game guide and a crossword puzzle book and that sort of thing.  And then, the mother brings in Little Women and Old Yeller and books like those.

Most moms aren't that extreme.  But, it's fun. 

My wife, for example, recently had a birthday party for my son.  And she told all the parents not to bring toys but to bring books as gifts.

That's a wonderfully practical idea because we need more books and books are always a good thing.  But, for a kid who's counting on those toys, it's just devastating.

I love moms and I love it when they sort of get it slightly wrong.

My son Cody and my nephew Austin thought I was the coolest Mom/Aunt EVER when given the chance to interview their favorite author. Now you'll get a chance to be THE COOLEST PARENT EVER! by bringing home this amazing giveaway package valued at $55.00.

• The Zoo Wee Mama! Card Game
• Cheese Touch Board Game
• Wimpy Kid Action Figure
• 200pc Diary of a Wimpy Kid Puzzle 

The Giveaway: How would you like to win your own Diary of a Wimpy Kid - Rodrick Rules Prize Pack! We have one to give away to one lucky contestant!

To enter the giveaway tell me which is yours or your child's favorite book in The Diary of a Wimpy Kid series! This step must be done before you can qualify for extra entries.

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This giveaway is open to residents of the US until April 1st at 11:59 pm.

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I was given a product for the purpose of reviewing. Opinions expressed are my own or my families and are not influenced by any form of compensation. Take it or leave it. Click here to view my full acknowledgment policy.