Ninja Claus!

Ninja! #3

by Arree Chung

In this third book in Arree Chung's Ninja! series, Maxwell pits his ninja skills against Santa ClausA young ninja has waited all year for Christmas Eve. He puts his skills to the test in the pursuit of one goal—to catch a glimpse of Santa Claus. But does Santa have some super-special ninja tricks of his own?"Chung (Ninja!, 2014) returns with a second comic-book-style tale about lovable, freckled-faced ninja Maxwell. . . .A clever, laugh-out-loud story." —Kirkus Reviews, starred review

Genres: Christmas, Picture Books, Holiday, Childrens, Fiction, Storytime, Humor

40 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 10, 2017

About the author

Arree Chung makes picture books but he didn’t always do so. Once he made spreadsheets all day long and he decided that he wanted to make pictures instead. Arree learned how to draw, paint and think a little bit differently at Art Center College of Design.

Arree is represented by Rubin Pfeffer at Rubin Pfeffer Content. http://www.rpcontent.com

Lots of cool stuff at: http://arree.com

Reviews

[Jon Nakapalau · Rating 5 out of 5]

SANTA HAS NINJA SKILLS! I knew it! And now I can point to this book and tell my friends I am not the only one who believes it! Really fun book that will be enjoyed by the whole family. Can see this book on the 'eclectic holiday book shelf' for many families - it is on my shelf for sure now!

[Abigail · Rating 3 out of 5]

Young would-be ninja Maxwell, whose story began in Ninja! , and continued in Ninja! Attack of the Clan , returns in this third picture-book chronicling his adventures, this time determined to use his ninja skills to catch Santa Claus in the act. His carefully laid plan doesn't quite work out however, as he ends up capturing his dog Brutus and his cookie-thieving father instead of the Christmas gift-giver. It turns out that Santa may be the sneakiest ninja of all...

Like its predecessors, Ninja Claus pairs an entertaining tale about a young boy and his imaginative play with colorful, engaging artwork, created using acrylic paint, found elements and Photoshop. The text here felt a little bit weak to me, until I read Santa's amusing letter at the end - the spirit of Christmas is indeed a renewable resource! - but the overall effect of the book was still pleasant. Recommended to children who have read or listened to and enjoyed Maxwell's previous adventures, and to all young ninja fans.

[Chance Lee · Rating 2 out of 5]

A book to continue tricking children into believing in Santa Claus even after they see dad eating all Santa's cookies.

[Earl · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun festive addition to the series. This time, Maxwell has his sights on capturing Santa who proves to have special ninja skills of his own!

[Pam · Rating 3 out of 5]

The young boy sets his ninja traps to catch Santa when he makes his annual visit. He captures the dog and his dad instead. His mom sends everyone to bed so Santa can come. Clever glimpse of Santa hiding in the other room while this is happening.
Santa leaves presents and answers his letter. The boy is thrilled and already plotting for next year when the book ends.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

Maxwell the ninja decides this is the year he's going to catch Santa Claus. He leaves a note, cookies and a trap to catch Santa. Except his plan is ruined when Brutus the dog and then his father (!) get caught in the trap instead. After everyone settles down and goes back to bed, Santa shows up with his best ninja moves, leaving Maxwell a pair of ninja boots instead of the requested rat eating snake.

A very charming Christmas story that fans of Maxwell are sure to enjoy. I think I might like this one the best -- the plot is linear and kids will connect with Maxwell's plan to catch Santa in action.

[Cindy Mitchell *Kiss the Book* · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chung, Arree Ninja Claus! PICTURE BOOK. Henry Holt (Macmillan), 2017. $18.

Maxwell is out to capture Santa with his ninja traps. But the Santa man is oh so clever. He avoids the traps and leaves something extra special for Maxwell – who hasn’t really given up on catching him!

I admit it – I postponed reading this until well after Christmas and I regret it. It is super cute and fun to read. I am a fan of Maxwell. While I don’t condone setting traps for Santa, the spirit of the book of playful and kind.

Pre-K, EL (K-3) – ADVISABLE. Cindy, Library Teacher
https://kissthebook.blogspot.com/2018...

[Nicola · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun festive Christmas book. I really liked the letters which are included - Miss 4 loves it when books do that and it's nice for print recognition / pre-reading skills showing the words both in the text and in the letters. Although he catches Dad eating Christmas cookies - not to worry Santa evades the traps to visit as well.

Miss 4 and I like to explore different books and authors at the library, sometimes around particular topics or themes. We try to get different ones out every week or so; it's fun for both of us to have the variety and to look at a mix of new & favourite authors.

[Tara McKenzie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Maxwell the ninja decides this is the year he's going to catch Santa Claus. He does everything he can think of.. leaves a note, cookies and a trap to catch Santa. Once everyone settles down and goes to bed, Santa shows up with his best ninja moves, leaving Maxwell a pair of ninja boots.

this book is super cute and keeps children engaged

this book would be great in any elementary class. especially during Christmas time.

[Jana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just about every kid will be able to relate to trying to catch Santa in the act. Maxwell is determined to see Santa Claus this year, and he’s set an elaborate trap to do it. Young readers will love the lengths Maxwell goes to in order to catch a glimpse. With humorous text and awesome illustrations that incorporate found paper into the scene, this will be lots of fun to share with kids in the days leading up to Christmas.

[Ashley Adkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

My little ones, ages 10 and 11, thought this was a fun book considering mom "only likes to read baby books". :) With that my boys are on the verge of no longer believing in Santa and there was one part in this book that made me look up at my husband with a feeling of panic. However, a page later the story put my worries to ease as my boys read on and caught some fun little tricks in the illustrations. Fun read for the little ones during the holiday season!

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maxwell has a lot of questions for Santa and this year he is determined to catch Santa so he can get his answers. Maxwell sets up a Santa trap on Christmas Eve and it almost works. This third book in Chung's Ninja! series is a wonderful Christmas story that explains (for the reader) how Santa manages to never get caught. It all makes sense: SANTA IS A NINJA! A truly fun addition to a delightful series!

[Daphne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hilarious adventure about young ninja Maxwell trying capture Santa Claus (who is more than a bit of a ninja himself!) on Christmas Eve. Love the scene with Santa's butt poking out from behind the chair, the hamster looking at Cass's present at the end, and I especially love the author's photo and note inside the back flap and how it links back to his dedication at the beginning. Brilliant!

[Sandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

All he wants is a glimpse of Santa and he builds a trap to do it. Unfortunately, he doesn't trap Santa, he traps someone else because Ninja Claus is sneaky, he is clever and quick, and he smart and kind. It's a fun and quick children's book that will have little ones smiling over.

[Lynn Davidson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A young boy who is always doing ninja things wants to catch Santa who didn't bring him what he wanted the Christmas before. He set his ninja traps and caught ... not quite Santa.
Funny. Great illustrations.

[Teresa Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chung's Ninja series continues with this delightful Christmas story. Little Ninja has a plan to catch Santa. Though the plan is clever, Santa uses his master ninja skills to slip away. But before leaving, Santa leaves the perfect Ninja gift behind. This is sure to become a Christmas favorite.

[Kristin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a cute story that brought me back to my childhood. No matter how hard my brother and I tried to stay awake to "catch" Santa, we always woke up in our own beds in the morning. And none of our "tricks" worked either when we started to question who Santa really was.

[Jessie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Maxwell sets a trap for Santa and catches his dog and his dad instead. Santa, though, gets around the traps.

Santa further encourages Maxwell in his ninja-ness, and Maxwell prepares to try to catch Santa again the next year.

[Patricia Gmitrovic · Rating 5 out of 5]

Is DAD busted??? Find out if the Ninja catches Claus

[SLoMoe · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a fun one to read. Kids liked the included letters and they kept an eye out for Ted the hamster in the illustrations. It was cute.

[Kathy Broadnax · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super cute

[Donna Mork · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kid tries to catch santa, but catches Dad instead. After they go to bed, Santa comes...ninja style, avoiding all the traps and leaves a note and the presents.

[Molly Cluff (Library!) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very cute for a "Kid trying to catch Santa" book. I appreciated that the kid only expected one thing as a gift, and was grateful and enthusiastic even when he didn't get what he asked for.

[The Hills · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cool book

Not a ninja fan myself, but this book was amazing! Great for kids who like/love ninjas. I recommend this book for anyone.

[Rebecca Gomez · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is lots of fun.

[Nan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute. He wants to catch Santa and Dad gets caught in the trap. As they all go to bed, Ninja Santa arrives and leaves some gifts as well as a cute note.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Perfect for sharing with some youngsters in those long days before Christmas, this picture book features humorous illustrations, created with acrylic paint, found paper, and Adobe Photoshop. In the book's pages, Maxwell is determined how to miss Santa's visit this year. He writes the jolly old elf a letter and sets several traps for him, but his plans go awry when he catches first his dog Brutus and then in a different location, his father, having devoured all the cookies he left for Santa. As it turns out, Santa is just as sneaky as this would-be ninja, and he leaves behind gifts, including some special shoes, and a letter. Young readers will smile while some parents will groan at Maxwell's desire for a snake and Santa's reasons for not leaving behind what Maxwell thinks he wants. Fans of ninjas or this ninja-based picture book series will enjoy this one and laugh at some of the scenes depicted here even while recognizing that almost every youngster has dreamed and plotted to catch Santa as he arrives on the scene.

[Rose Rosetree · Rating 5 out of 5]

Maxwell, an aspiring Ninja, is determined to catch Santa this year.

This story can appeal to readers who like at least one of the following:

1* A cheeky little boy who aims to be a fighter, and already acts like one.
2* A picture book that contains letters. A few letters, cleverly written. (Though I would hardly call this epistolary fiction.)
3* Santa Claus portrayed as a kind of celebrity who happens to be kind.
4* And a basic assumption that Christmas is strictly a cultural event, all about gift giving.

FIVE STARS for those of you Goodreaders who are on the wavelength of this tale.

Only 2* appeals to me, alas. And even that, weakly.

[Dow Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was not what I expected but I really enjoyed it. This book is about a little boy trying to use his ninja skills to catch Santa but the only person he catches is his papa now trapped in a chair eating cookies. Then a child's worst nightmare appears, is there no Santa? Mother comes down and tells everyone to go asleep and says Santa only visits when everyone is asleep. it is then revealed that Santa is quick and clever like a ninja. In the morning Santa has a present and a letter for the little ninja boy answering all of his questions. This book could be used for a creative activity where students could come up with their own plan on how to catch Santa in a map form.

[Jenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

We tried this one out for Christmas and while fun it just wasn't that great of a story. The artwork was phenomenal though. The kids and I loved all the detailing. I would have liked more narration and less dialogue. That said, the kids enjoyed it and it made us check out more Arree Chung books which were even better.