of the basement so fast, I think he might’ve
actually taken the stairs FOUR at a time.
And once he got out of the house, Rowley didn’t
STOP. He climbed halfway up the big tree on the
side of the house, and that’s where I found him,
babbling nonsense.
I tried to talk him into coming down, but he
wouldn’t budge. So I got a tennis racket and
some balls and tried to KNOCK him down, but
that only made him climb HIGHER.
214
Unfortunately for me, that’s the moment Dad
came home.
Wednesday
It’s been a pretty crazy couple of weeks since me
and Rowley made our movie. I’ve been too busy to
keep up with my journal, because Dad has had me
working in the furnace room every night sorting
through all the stuff that fell off the shelves.
HONK!
215
I tried explaining to Dad that we were just
making a movie and things got out of hand, but it
was like talking to a wall. I thought Mom would
be a little more understanding, but it turns out
the tape in the camcorder was of Manny taking
his first steps, and we recorded right over it.
So I’m stuck cleaning up this mess in the furnace
room, and meanwhile, Rowley is drinking in
his newfound fame. A news crew came out and
recorded the moment when the fire department
got him down out of the tree, and the footage of
the “dramatic rescue” spread like crazy.
Rowley hasn’t even been back to school, because
every morning talk show wants a piece of him.
SPLAT
216
What’s really annoying is that in all these
interviews, Rowley hasn’t mentioned my name
ONCE, even though I’m the one who MADE him
famous. But these days he pretty much acts like
the world revolves around him.
I guess that’s what fame does to a person. All
out of myself just to get a cheap laugh from the
people watching at home.
DOG
217
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Thanks to all the Wimpy Kid fans for encouraging me to write about
Greg Heffley and his crazy family. Thanks to my own crazy and
wonderful family for doing the same.
Thanks to Charlie Kochman for sitting by my side and encouraging
me to dig deep and write the best books I can. Thanks to everyone at
Abrams, especially Michael Jacobs, Jason Wells, Veronica Wasserman,
Chad W. Beckerman, Susan Van Metre, Robby Imfeld, Alison Gervais,
Elisa Garcia, Samantha Hoback, Kim Ku, and Michael Clark.
Thanks to Shaelyn Germain and Anna Cesary for all of the support
and hard work. Thanks to Deb Sundin and the staff at An Unlikely
Story for making book lovers happy every day.
Thanks to Rich Carr and Andrea Lucey for your support and
friendship. Thanks to Paul Sennott and Ike Williams for your
invaluable advice.
Thanks to Jess Brallier for cheering me on year after year. Thanks to
everyone at Poptropica for your support and inspiration.
Thanks to Sylvie Rabineau and Keith Fleer for helping me navigate
the film and TV world. Thanks to everyone in Hollywood who is
working to bring new Wimpy Kid stories to life, including Nina
Jacobson, Brad Simpson, David Bowers, Elizabeth Gabler, Roland
Poindexter, Ralph Milero, and Vanessa Morrison.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jeff Kinney is a #1 New York Times bestselling author and a six-time
Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Award winner for Favorite Book. Jeff has
been named one of Time magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in
the World. He is also the creator of Poptropica, which was named
one of Time magazine’s 50 Best Websites. He spent his childhood in
the Washington, D.C., area and moved to New England in 1995. Jeff
lives with his wife and two sons in Massachusetts, where they own
a bookstore, An Unlikely Story.
www.amuletbooks.com
www.wimpykid.com