This book took the world by storm, becoming a New York Times number one bestseller, starting a series (17 books and counting, selling 275 million copies total) and eventually landing the author on Time's "100 most influential people" list. And . . . I don't get it. I was mildly amused and entertained, yes. The author does a good job portraying what is on a middle school boy's mind (generally, himself). But it wasn't that funny, and—this is what disappointed me—the protagonist shows no remorse for selfish actions, no recognition that those he has wronged have a right to be upset, and so on. He is completely self-absorbed and concerned only with how to 'get ahead' (meaning be more popular, get stuff he wants, and get out of stuff he hates). While that is realistic (for all human beings, really), it is not what we should strive to be. I had hoped for more. I think my rating is generous, but since I did laugh in places . . .
Rating: B-
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