Diary of a Wimpy Kid

This article is about the franchise. For the first book, see Diary of a Wimpy Kid (book). For other uses, see Diary of a Wimpy Kid (disambiguation).

Diary of a Wimpy Kid
The word "Diary" in a serif font, followed by "of a Wimpy Kid" in hand lettering
Created byJeff Kinney
Original workDiary of a Wimpy Kid (2007; preceded by online version on Funbrain in 2004)
Owners
Print publications
Book(s)Books list
Films and television
Film(s)Film series
Theatrical presentations
Musical(s)Musical
Games
Video game(s)Video games
Official website
wimpykid.com (US) wimpykidclub.co.uk (UK)

Diary of a Wimpy Kid is an American children's book series and media franchise created by American author and cartoonist Jeff Kinney.[1][2] The series follows Greg Heffley, a middle-schooler who illustrates his daily life in a diary (although he insists that it is a journal).[3]

Kinney spent eight years working on the first book before showing it to a publisher.[4] In 2004, Funbrain and Kinney released an online version of Diary of a Wimpy Kid. The website made daily entries from September 2004 to June 2005.[5] The online version had received almost 20 million views by 2009. Nonetheless, many online readers requested a printed version. In February 2006, during the New York Comic Con, Kinney signed a multi-book deal with publisher Abrams Books to turn Diary of a Wimpy Kid into a printed book series.[4] The first installment was released in April 2007[5] and received immediate success. In April 2009, Time magazine named Kinney in the Time 100 most influential people.[6]

As of October 2024, the series consists of nineteen main entries, as well as an activity book. A spin-off series centering on the character Rowley Jefferson has three installments as of 2021.[7] 20th Century Studios produced a live-action film series of the same name from 2010 to 2017, and three animated films in the early 2020s.[8]

Since the release of the online version, most of the books have garnered positive reviews and commercial success. As of 2020, more than 250 million copies have been sold globally, making it the fourth best-selling book series of all time.[9]

  1. ^ Browne, David (March 20, 2011). "All about Jeff Kinney". Parade. Retrieved December 27, 2011.
  2. ^ "Ten years ago, Jeff Kinney created a new kind of comic hero". The Washington Post. Associated Press. April 26, 2017. Retrieved April 27, 2017. Abrams Books said the 12th book, coming November 7, will be called 'Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Getaway.'
  3. ^ Kinney, Jeff (April 2007). Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Greg Heffley's journal. Amulet Books. ISBN 978-0-8109-9313-6.
  4. ^ a b "WIMPY 2 LAST". November 3, 2015. Retrieved March 6, 2016.
  5. ^ a b "Diary of a Wimpy Kid". FunBrain. Family Education Network. Archived from the original on September 28, 2015. Retrieved March 5, 2011.
  6. ^ Simpson, Forrest (2009). "The 2009 Time 100: Jeff Kinney". Time.
  7. ^ Yasharoff, Hannah. "How 'Diary of a Wimpy Kid' author Jeff Kinney became the king of COVID-19 book tours". USA TODAY.
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference Diary was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Kantor, Emma (May 26, 2020). "Wimpy Kid 15 Cover and Title Revealed". PublishersWeekly.com. Retrieved December 17, 2020.