So You Want to Be a Ninja? Book Review

So You Want to Be a Ninja? 
Written by Bruno Vincent
Illustrated by Takayo Akiyama
Expected publication: July 7, 2020

Mom's Review:
It's finally here!!! And it's everything we've been waiting for! Confident Kate, anxious Angus, and somewhat-self-absorbed Eddie are back and interested in legendary Japanese ninjas. Similar to the previous two titles (So You Want to Be a Viking? and So You Want to Be a Roman Soldier?), So You Want to Be a Ninja? provides a fun-filled graphic novel experience of historic Japan under Shogun reign. Readers will take a quiz to determine what type of ninja they should become, learn about secret hand signals and unique weapons, and distinguish fake news (like the ninja who could become a frog) from reality. And that's just the start! T wanted to read this in one sitting, but I didn't have the voice for it, so we covered it in two days, enlisting his dad to read also. The publisher's synopsis states, "So You Want to Be a Ninja? is a highly entertaining and accurate account of ninjutsu that’s perfect for any child interested in martial arts or Japanese history." I could not agree more! 

So You Want to Be a Ninja? is a winner and a fun introduction to 1700's Japanese history.

Son's Reaction:
T has been waiting eagerly for months since we knew this book was in the works. When it arrived in the mail a few days ago, he ran around shouting in excitement. We read half of it immediately. So You Want to Be a Ninja? lived up to his expectations, and is an awesome addition to the series! Since we finished it the other day, T has been paging through it, imparting tidbits of information about ninjas, and building ninja-related structures and guys from LEGO. Clearly, this is a HUGE hit!!!

Son's Review:
(Age: 5)
I like it! *huge smile* I think there's a really funny part [where Kate pokes Angus and Eddie with a hairpin] 'cuz those are her teammates. The funniest part is the needle pin part. She's [Kate's] gonna poke her own teammates. That's the funny part. One of her teammates is Angus. It's a fun book. The other thing I liked about it was that it was so easy to build something that goes along with it. Like the castle and the ninja guy. (see below)

I found out you need a chain and a sword, and you can buckle the chain to the sword and climb up a castle wall. They [ninjas] seem bad but they are good 'cuz they sneak around and find out information...they fight villains. One thing I realized was women were invited to be ninjas. One of the teachers was a woman.


Note: Thames and Hudson provided a review copy in exchange for an honest review.

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