The Legend of Ninja Cowboy Bear

By David Bruins and Hilary Leung

The ninja, the cowboy and the bear do everything together — they paint pictures, compare cloud shapes in the sky, fly kites and much more. Though each friend is very different from one another, they enjoy each other's company. Until one day when they begin quarreling and compete to see which one is the best. The bear can pile up rocks the highest. The cowboy can collect the most raspberries. The ninja can catch the most rabbits. When each contest leads to more resentment, it seems the friends will never stop disagreeing. Only when they learn to be considerate of their differences do they finally realize how much they appreciate each other.

The cute, yet stylized artwork combined with a fun story about friendship and celebrating differences make this legend an unforgettable one.

This playfully illustrated picture book also includes instructions for the Ninja-Cowboy-Bear game, which is similar to Rock Paper Scissors except that kids use their whole body.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Kids Can Press
• Release date: May 15, 2012
• ISBN: 9781554539215

David Bruins

David Bruins is a practicing attorney. He attended Calvin College, Rutgers University-Newark (BA, summa cum laude; Phi Beta Kappa), and Villanova University School of Law (JD). He has previously served as an elder in the United Reformed Church (URCNA) and as a deacon in the Christian Reformed Church (CRCNA). He and his wife, Maureen, reside in New Jersey outside of New York City. They have four grown children and three grandchildren.

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Reviews for The Legend of Ninja Cowboy Bear

[mirikayla · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Very cute. The detail in the illustrations tells as much of the story as the words do, especially on the very first pages. Comes with silly little instructions for the Ninja Cowboy Bear game, too, which is essentially Rock Paper Scissors with your whole body instead of one hand.

[sweetiegherkin · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Ninja, Cowboy, and Bear are best friends who love do everything together, until one day a game goes awry. Suddenly everything becomes a competition and each friend wants to declare himself "the best." Over time, the friends come to realize that each has their own unique talents to contribute, and there is no need to constantly try to one up each other. Although it's borders on being too didactic, I really enjoyed this book. It's a great lesson for kids (and honestly, let's face it, some adults) to learn/be reminded of from time to time. The three disparate characters make it interesting, and these popular children's figures were clearly picked to appeal to young boys (and I think the book will no doubt prove successful in that). The illustrations are also fun, with an energy and sharpness about them that is pleasing and engaging.The only downside to this book is it tries to be more exciting by adding a "game" at the end, which is basically a large motor pantomime version of "Rock Paper Scissors" replaced with "Ninja Cowboy Bear." It just seemed a little strange to me to include something so mindlessly competitive after concluding a tale all about acceptance and discovering one's own special abilities, without having to lord them over someone else.