Dork Diaries OMG: All About Me Diary! by Rachel Renee Russell

Dork Diaries OMG: All About Me Diary! by Rachel Renee Russell
Buy Dork Diaries OMG: All About Me Diary! by Rachel Renee Russell at Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com
Category: Children's Non-Fiction
Reviewer: John Lloyd
Summary: Not perfect, and perhaps not what one expects, but this book could be a very influential and interesting product.
Buy? Yes	Borrow? Yes
Pages: 272	Date: October 2013
Publisher: Simon and Schuster Children's Books
ISBN: 9781471117732
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I feel a pattern forming. After three books in the Dork Diaries series came a throw-away, tie-in volume that offered a bit of a story to it but was not full-on plot and action like the routine books. After six real novels comes this, where for the first time the star of the book really is not Nikki Maxwell, but whoever buys it (or gets it bought for them). This is where the franchise branches away from fiction, to cover the purchaser or fan of the series, and gives her the chance to spill about herself, her school life, and her BFFs. I think this is where I'm supposed to go SQUEEEEEEE!!!!!!

The format is simple – every day (and a bonus punt at leap years) the reader is asked a question, and is given a space to fill the answer in. It can relate to school meals, favourite film stars, bestest wardrobe items or anything else a tween could be concerned with. And when you get to the end, you start right back at the beginning, for a full two years' worth of entries have been expected, to show the full right-on personal growth and changes of opinion, if any.

It has to be said there are sometimes a problem with this, notably one of space. One time you get three lines to itemise the six friends you'd invite into your home-made band and what they played, but as you've had experience with writing twelve favourite birthday party guests in three lines you should be an expert at concision by now. Elsewhere the questions seem to pretend there are differences between Chloe and Zoe from the real books, when their names prove there clearly aren't, and far too many are Halloween based.

But I'll admit the surprising variety and depth – and in fact the rampant assumptions it sometimes makes – do force the participant to take a good look at themselves, beyond the superficial crushes and school lesson peeves, and there is a case to be had for saying this will be an entertaining amusement for the relevant young lady. Russell collectors note this must be a UK edition, as it has Bonfire Night and only one reference to Thanksgiving, and there's a peculiar either/or scenario to be found about whether one wants to be British Prime Minister or PotUS. As Ed Milliband couldn't answer that very well (in just a few lines, anyway) it's proof that this engaging selection of slightly weird questions would challenge the reader, in many ways more than the original novels do. So don't you dare make the mistake of thinking this is a regular book in the series – but it is by no means a bad one.

I must thank the publishers for my review copy.

Don't You Dare by Sharky and George has a lot of less cerebral but still school break-friendly activities.

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You can read more book reviews or buy Dork Diaries OMG: All About Me Diary! by Rachel Renee Russell at Amazon.co.uk Amazon currently charges £2.99 for standard delivery for orders under £20, over which delivery is free.
You can read more book reviews or buy Dork Diaries OMG: All About Me Diary! by Rachel Renee Russell at Amazon.com.

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