There are two sides to each and every story.
The Diary of a Wimpy Kid universe is set to get even bigger this year as author Jeff Kinney releases a new book – this time, from a whole new point of view.
Diary of an Awesome Friendly Kid: Rowley Jefferson’s Journal will follow Rowley Jefferson, the best friend of Diary of a Wimpy Kid protagonist Greg Heffley.
Puffin, part of Penguin Random House Children’s, announced on Tuesday that the book will be released on April 9, 2019. It is Kinney’s first book outside of the original Diary of a Wimpy Kid series.
Heffley has been chronicling his years in middle school in thirteen Diary of a Wimpy Kid journals. In the newest book, his best friend – the always-cheerful Rowley Jefferson – agrees to take on the role recording his friend’s life story.
But it turns out Rowley is a poor choice for the job, and his ‘biography’ of Greg ends up saying more about himself than it does about his best friend.
With over 350 black-and-white illustrations, Diary of an Awesome Friendly Kid offers readers a chance to see the Diary of a Wimpy Kid world in a whole new way.
Diary of an Awesome Friendly Kid will be followed by the publication of the fourteenth book in the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series in Autumn 2019.
Francesca Dow, Managing Director of Penguin Random House Children’s, sayid
“We couldn’t be more excited to start 2019 with one of the biggest announcements in children’s publishing. Very few series have had the phenomenal global success of Diary of a Wimpy Kid and we are thrilled to continue the journey by bringing a sensational new book from bestselling author Jeff Kinney to millions of fans.
“This is the first time readers will discover the Wimpy Kid world from best friend Rowley Jefferson’s point of view, and with Jeff’s trademark humour and hilarious illustrations we know this will captivate fans and new readers alike.”
The story originally began as a World Book Day 2019 story, and was due to be published on March 7. However, Kinney loved writing it so much – and was so inspired by telling Rowley’s story for the first time – that he turned it into a full-length novel.
