Our Stories

My son is a huge fan of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid book series, so much so that it would really help if the author of the series could publish a new book at least once a month. Not realistic, I know, but for a kid who likes following the exploits of a fleshed-out stick figure who can't seem to come out on top, there are never too many titles. I have tried getting him into similar looking books--there are many, many series now that are following the model of drawings interspersed with text--but it is the antics of Greg (the "Wimpy Kid") that he loves. He'd sooner read those books over and over than explore every other cartoony hero.
 
As I watched him devouring the most recent book in the series (which I had intended to pre-order, then intended to get on its release date, then finally got last week), I couldn't help but think about what stories do for us. For my son, Wimpy Kid not only makes him laugh, it provides a window into things he hasn't experienced in his own life yet, and makes him feel more prepared to handle things like school craziness and family drama as they come along. And is anything we adults watch or read really so different? Sure, sometimes we watch and read in order to escape, but don't the stories we see often help us deal with situations in our own lives? While the adventures of Greg, the "Wimpy Kid," and of our fiction and TV heroes may be way more "out there" than what we will ever live through, the emotions of the characters are still human emotions. The choices are still human choices. And sometimes, a little reference on being human doesn't hurt.
 
I dare say my son will be reading this latest Wimpy Kid book over and over until the next one comes out. And if it makes him laugh and gives him a relatable role model--a kid just trying to make his way through a tricky world--that's just fine with me.