Parents' Guide to

The Legend of Rock Paper Scissors

By Jan Carr, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 4+

Raucous fun imagining origin story for popular kids' game.

Book Drew Daywalt Picture Book 2017
The Legend of Rock Paper Scissors Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this book.

Community Reviews

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age 8+

Based on 1 parent review

dianatm
dianatm Adult
October 28, 2021
age 8+

Emphasis on warriors, fighting, and victory

The characters are all "warriors" and the entire story is nothing but fighting. As a parent, I don't want to glorify fighting or aggression in any context. Furthermore, this story is cute and clever from an adult's perspective but the concept is entirely lost on young children. Why would someone be seeking out a fight? And why would they hope to lose the battle? That is a bit too complex for young children to understand and I think the aggressive nature of the characters is what comes through most.

This title has:

Too much violence
See all 1 parent review

What's the Story?

THE LEGEND OF ROCK PAPER SCISSORS imagines that Rock, Paper, and Scissors were once warriors battling in their respective kingdoms, looking for worthy foes. Each of them vanquishes all others. Rock smooshes an apricot, Paper defeats a printer by causing a paper jam, and Scissors lays waste to a roll of tape. Finally, they meet each other, and kids can predict the outcome: Rock defeats Scissors, Paper defeats Rock, and Scissors defeats Paper.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say: (1 ):
Kids say: Not yet rated

There's lots of rollicking good fun in this book that imagines the origin of the kids' game rock, paper, scissors as a classic legend, complete with warriors, kingdoms, and epic battles. The Legend of Rock Paper Scissors is filled with serious silliness. Paper battles a printer and wins by causing a paper jam. Scissors challenges a tape dispenser by saying, "Let us do battle, you tacky and vaguely round monstrosity," while the tape dispenser vows to use his "adhesive and tangling powers."

The human-like warriors are fiercely funny, and the raging battles are announced in all caps, as if shouted from the ring: "ROCK VERSUS APRICOT! PAPER VERSUS HALF-EATEN BAG OF TRAIL MIX!" There’s also some giggle-inducing underwear and butt humor. So who's funnier and more clever, author Drew Daywalt or illustrator Adam Rex? That battle may be a very happy draw.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the made-up legend in The Legend of Rock Paper Scissors. How do you think the author came up with this idea? Can you make up legends yourself?

  • Do you play rock, paper, scissors with your friends? What are the rules, and who wins over whom? Could you predict who was going to win in the battles in the book?

  • How does the artist give the inanimate objects expressive faces and qualities?

Book Details

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