Diary of an Awesome Friendly Kid: Rowley Jefferson's Journal

Diary of an Awesome Friendly Kid is a spin-off of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series by Jeff Kinney. Unlike the main-series books, which are written from the perspective of Greg Heffley, Diary of an Awesome Friendly Kid is written from the perspective of Greg's best friend, Rowley Jefferson, acting as Greg's biographer.

Plot
As said before, it is about Rowley Jefferson getting his very own journal, but after Greg intervenes, it becomes his biography.

Why It’s An Awesome, Friendly Book

 * 1) The idea of Rowley Jefferson, the friendliest character in the series, having his own journal is a great idea, and is thankfully executed well.
 * 2) Many funny and great chapters, such as “The Time Me and Greg Came Up With Our Own Superhero” and “The Time Greg Played a Hilarious Prank on Me”.
 * 3) The horror chapters, “An Even More Scary Story” especially, are pretty good and decently spooky.
 * 4) It shows how honest Rowley can be, since the entire thing shows Greg’s true nature as a liar, manipulator, promise-breaker and lousy study partner.
 * 5) The cartoonish drawings are great and actually quite cute, and are very fitting for Rowley’s iconic child-like nature.
 * 6) The Zoo-Wee Mama comics still contain their usual charm, and are much funnier then they are in the original Diary of a Wimpy Kid.
 * 7) Amazing Guy is a wholesome superhero.
 * 8) The one page of the book where Grandpa Jefferson's last word "bampy" and slowly dies is really emotional and heartbreaking.

Bad Qualities

 * 1) There are several problems with some of the characters:
 * 2) *Greg is portrayed as more of a selfish, manipulative, and self-centered jerk.
 * 3) ** Now, while being a manipulative jerk were some of his traits, they weren't shown as often. In these books, that's Greg's only trait in this series. Granted, this book is viewed in the perspective of Rowley and this could just be how he really sees Greg, but his misdemeanors seem a little exaggerated. Rowley, while still a likable character, lacks common sense - he is completely blind to Greg's manipulation and mistreatment of him, and remains friends with him despite the fact that Greg treats Rowley awfully in this book. In real life, anyone in Rowley's situation would end their friendship with Greg right on cue.
 * 4) *Rowley's father, Robert Jefferson, is extremely unlikable throughout the book as he forces his son to have a best-friend relationship with as opposed to a father-and-son relationship, and also for hating Greg for thinking him that he has a "bad influence" for his son.
 * 5) Tons of mean-spirited scenes, especially during “The Time I Found Out Greg Is a Lousy Study Partner” and “The Time Me and Greg Had a Two-Night Sleepover”.
 * 6) A bit of gross-out humor, although not much.
 * 7) It can be somewhat irritating to read due to Greg’s behavior.

Trivia

 * This is the first time Greg acknowledges his creator, as when Rowley says he did all the writing and drawing, he says “OK then but who’s this guy?” and points to Jeff Kinney’s name.