Written and illustrated by Jeffery Kinney, Double Down is the 11th book in the series Diary of a Wimpy Kid. Released just last month, it is obviously Halloween-themed, with some spooky humour thrown in for the laughs.

The series is written with elementary and middle schoolers in mind and they love all the wackiness that makes Greg Heffley the kind of a kid whose antics they enjoy reading about. I have read a couple of other books in the series, so while I was familiar with what to expect, I have to confess that I didn’t have trouble taking breaks while reading it, unlike the others which were pretty difficult to put down before reaching the end.

The humour, suspense and sympathy with Greg is still here, though the journal style with Greg’s random thoughts go on and on before things actually start happening and the plot appears. There are various sub-plots loosely connected, and the only continuity seems to be due to the typical quirky humour and the offbeat sketches that are present in every page.

Greg’s narration starts with his wild thoughts about his life, where he starts to make himself believe that his life is like The Truman Show, being secretly filmed. He confesses looking for clues to catch the secret filming and wondering if everyone around him is an actor, including his family. Later on, after lots of pages and failed attempts by his mum to make him indulge in something creative (because she believes he has special creative talents that need to be discovered), he decides to make a horror movie. Yes the theme of Halloween is predominant, being a Halloween release.

The characters are all engaging and amusing, and despite being very peculiar in their own weird way, there is something relatable in each that has made this series such a huge success. But Jeffery Kinney needs to come up with more intriguing plots rather than relying mainly on the characters to engage the readers.

For Wimpy Kid fans Double Down is going to be more of what they have already enjoyed.

Available at Paramount Books

Published in Dawn, Young World, December 3rd, 2016