Dork Diaries: Tales from a Not-So-Fabulous Life [Hardcover]

Rachel Renee Russell (Author, Illustrator)

Book Description

Release date: June 2, 2009 | Age Range: 9 and up | Series: Dork Diaries (Book 1)

It’s Diary of a Wimpy Kid for girls in this hilarious new novel!

Dork Diaries follows eighth grader Nikki Maxwell as she chronicles through text and sketches her move to a snooty new school; her epic battle with her mom for an iPhone; her enthusiasm for drawing and art; and a love/hate fascination with the new school’s queen bee, a girl named Mackenzie, who becomes Nikki’s rival in a schoolwide art competition. Nikki writes about friendships, crushes, popularity, and family with a unique and fresh voice that still conveys a universal authenticity. Nikki’s sketches throughout her diary add humor and spunk to the book, a surefire hit with tween girl readers.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 5-8–Fourteen-year-old Nikki J. Maxwell has been awarded a scholarship to a prestigious private middle school as a part of her father's bug extermination contract. Her angst as she deals with the resident mean girl, her embarrassing parents, her crush on the hot boy, and making new friends are all recorded alongside numerous sketches of her life. Although occasionally amusing, Nikki is not a very likable character. She is shallow and self-centered and fails to show any growth in the book, even as she one-ups popular and cruel MacKenzie in the end. In fact, Nikki, who steals her neighbor's hearing aid and plays pranks on her little sister, is somewhat of a mean girl herself. All the other characters are underdeveloped, including Nikki's family and her new BFFs, Chloe and Zoey. Black-and-white drawings, which are often witty, appear throughout the text, which is printed on lined pages as though from a diary. Fans of Jeff Kinney's Diary of a Wimpy Kid (Abrams) may enjoy this book, but it's an additional purchase.–Terry Ann Lawler, Phoenix Public Library, AZ
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About the Author

Rachel Renee Russell is an attorney who prefers writing children’s books to legal briefs. She currently resides in Michigan.

Product Details

• Age Range: 9 and up
  
• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Aladdin; First Edition edition (June 2, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1416980067
• ISBN-13: 978-1416980063
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.5 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (316 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,456 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #62 in Books > Children's Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Comics & Graphic Novels
  • #76 in Books > Children's Books > Social Situations > School

More About the Author

Rachel Renee Russell is an attorney who prefers writing children's books to legal briefs. She lives in Aldie, VA.

Amazon Author Rankbeta 

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#96 in Books > Teens

#96 in Books > Teens

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Gotta-Read Book for Middle-Graders June 21, 2009

By J. Kaye Oldner VINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover

Dork Diaries is very much like the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series, only for girls. Since I am a fan of that series, I was really excited to read this book. Nikki Maxwell, an enormously funny character, is getting ready to start a new school. She wants to be part of the CCP group. CCP stands for cute, cool, and popular. She's positive that if her mother purchased her a new iPhone, it would secure her a spot there.

Nikki's mother arrives home with a back-to-school present she purchased at the mall. Nikki is positive it's an iPhone. What does her mother purchase for her instead? A diary. Although Nikki swears not write in the diary, she does. And because she is artist, many of the pages include her sketches.

Even though Nikki doesn't get an iPhone, that doesn't stop the desire. An opportunity presents itself when Nikki learns about an art contest. The grand prize is $500. The only problem is Mackenzie Hollister, leader of the CCP group, is also entering. Mackenzie will do whatever it takes to win.

There was so much to love about the book. The ending was different than I expected, which was a great surprise. What I liked best was seeing her grow in the book. Nikki experienced some pretty horrible things, but she did find friends - good friends, not the superficial CCP ones.

This review is by Nona, my daughter.

67 of 80 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars VERY Inapropriate for the target age July 19, 2011

By Buttercup

Format:Hardcover

I tutor kids every summer and one of my 3rd graders asked about reading it... I'm SOOOO glad I read the first few chapters before handing it over.

I would have been mortified if I'd blindly given my student a book talking about celebrities with no panties on and talking about SKANKS!!! I cannot believe it's recommended for 9 year olds online! Irresponsible advertising by someone. Also - although I'm really not one to get hung up on any body image stuff people worry about for young girls, I was a little irritated with a picture they drew of the main character (very tall and skinny - as those illustrations go, naturally) but with some slim chicken wings and a beak with the label "Big fat chicken". Sorry, there are some out there who would get very upset with a skinny girl labeled "fat" in a young girls book. Just warning anyone still considering buying the book for someone who is still innocent and impressionable.

Bottom line - if it's for an honest to goodness middle schooler who has watched R movies and been exposed to tons of MTV shows and older teen stuff, this is a fine book and series. But if the reader is a younger, less exposed, more naive child - hold off for a few years and let them keep their innocence a while longer.

18 of 21 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars Parents beware May 11, 2012

By Jill Valgora

Format:Kindle Edition

My daughter is finishing 3rd grade and has read several other books in this series. She reads at a 5th grade level so we thought this book series would be appropriate for her. I was very wrong. The word sucks appears on page 11 and
probably more throughout the book but we stopped reading it at that point. Although the word "sucks" may not be considered a "swear word", it is certainly not a word I ever want to hear coming out of my 9 year old's mouth and let's all face it, our children absorb and repeat what they are exposed to. I also don't like the references to needing a cell phone, blogging personal stuff online, your first kiss, and all of the boy-craziness. I think it is wrong to say that a girl's life "totally sucks" because she doesn't have a cell phone and a boyfriend. Childrens' books have a lot of influence over their thoughts and behaviors. This book went too far and I'll have to put it away until she's older which produced a lot of tears. As parents, we have to be willing to do that though, if we really care. I know all of the "kids" who read this book liked it, but parents beware. This one went a little too far.