Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Third Wheel

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Third Wheel

Author	Jeff Kinney
Illustrator	Jeff Kinney
Language	English
Series	Diary of a Wimpy Kid
Genre	Children's
Publisher	Amulet Books (US) Puffin Books (UK)
Publication date	November 13, 2012 January 30, 2014 (Paperback re-issue)
Publication place	United States
Media type	Print (paperback, hardcover)
Pages	217
ISBN	978-1-4197-0584-7
Preceded by	Cabin Fever
Followed by	Hard Luck

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Third Wheel is a 2012 bestselling children's novel and the seventh book in the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series, written by American author Jeff Kinney. Kinney announced the book in March 2012, with The Third Wheel's cover revealed in May 2012. The book was released on November 13, 2012.

Plot

Greg recalls several anecdotes from the time of his conception to his preschool years; notable ones include how his mother read to him before bed, how his parents’ excessive kissing supposedly led to his premature birth and his difficulties in learning how to walk. After talking about his life from before he was born to his preschool years, Greg explains some of the new parenting methods his mother has tried on Manny and how Manny has been affected by those methods, which differ from those of Greg.

After comparing his childhood to Manny's, Greg decides to do chores when his Uncle Gary shows up at the front door. Uncle Gary explains how he was tricked into a “business opportunity of a lifetime” by a man in Boston and needs a place to stay while getting back up onto his dogs. He moves in before Greg's father, Frank, can object to the proposition.

As Uncle Gary struggles to adjust to life at Greg's home, the school prepares for a new student council election. Greg signs up for Rowley to be a member due to his lack of detentions. Greg starts a desperately extensive, disorganized voting campaign for Rowley, which proves useless as Rowley was the only one who signed up to be social chairperson. The student council decides on the next school fundraiser. One student suggested they do a mixed motocross and wrestling event, but that got rejected in favor of a Valentine's Day dance because the school did not allow motorized vehicles in the gym. Greg decides to attend but has difficulty finding a girl to accompany him, and he gives up after a while.

Then, a girl on the student council, Abigail Brown, is left alone after her boyfriend, Michael Sampson, has a family obligation. Greg persuades Rowley to ask Abigail to go with them as a group of friends, to which she agrees. Greg's idea is to use Rowley to get him a girlfriend so he can date her. Before the dance, the group goes out to dinner, but Greg is bankrupted after he is forced to pay the bill.

At the dance, their night is ruined when geezers overrun their dance, claiming they reserved the dance area first, but they compromise things that ruin the theme, such as lights, no more music, and a partition severing half the gym. Michael Sampson arrives with another girl, Cherie Bellanger, as the family obligation was a ruse, and he doesn't count on Abigail's attendance. Abigail is left in tears, and Greg attempts to comfort her. Finally, while dancing with Abigail, Greg spots what looks like chicken pox marks on her face. It only turns out she had pimples when she was crying over Michael, but Greg panics, leaving Abigail in tears, and Rowley comforts her.

The book ends with Uncle Gary winning $40,000 from the local lottery and paying Frank with the money, thus being able to now move out of the house. Rowley and Abigail begin dating, and Greg gets the chicken pox.

Development

The title and cover of The Third Wheel were revealed in May 2012. The book had an initial printing of 6.5 million copies. Kinney commented that he enjoyed writing the book because "there’s so much humor to be mined in the world of middle school romance."

Reception

Critical and reader reception for The Third Wheel was positive, with the San Angelo Standard-Times calling the book "masterful."