The Legend of Rock Paper Scissors
By Jan Carr,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Raucous fun imagining origin story for popular kids' game.
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Based on 1 parent review
Emphasis on warriors, fighting, and victory
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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?
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
- Author: Drew Daywalt
- Illustrator: Adam Rex
- Genre: Picture Book
- Topics: Sports and Martial Arts , Book Characters
- Book type: Fiction
- Publisher: Balzer + Bray
- Publication date: April 4, 2017
- Publisher's recommended age(s): 4 - 8
- Number of pages: 48
- Available on: Hardback, iBooks
- Last updated: July 13, 2017
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