The Ninjabread Man

by C.J. Leigh, Chris Gall (Illustrator)

But the cookie escapes from the oven and runs loose! Can the Ninjabread Man trick Ninja Bear, Ninja Snake, Ninja Mouse, and Ninja Fox? In the end, the clever Ninja Fox outsmarts the Ninjabread Man.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Fiction, Food, Fairy Tales, Christmas, Fantasy

Paperback

Published January 1, 2016

Reviews

[Scottsdale Public Library]

This is a great twist on a classic. We read it side by side with the more tradition version by Galdone before baking gingerbread cookies. Readers may also enjoy The Gingerbread Cowboy by Squires or The Gingerbread Girl by Ernst. Ask open ended questions about how the stories are alike and different for added learning extension. -- Alexis S.

[Gayatri]

Finally something other than the gingerbread man! Now you really can't catch him, because he's a ninja or can you?

[Lee]

Okay this is hilarious, I had a great time.

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had such grand plans for Christmas. I bought a ninjabread kit and set out to make the cookies. They were gummy little expletives and baked up to be a fat pain in my neck. I'm so proud of myself for not cussing in this review lol. So long suppressed expletive laden review short, I finally got over my ninja on ninja hatred and read the book tonight. I loved the artwork and the story in this book. This is one of the few books I'd gladly read over and over.

[Spencer · Rating 3 out of 5]

2026

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2021
Loved this one! The story was great. Super fun! And I really like the ending. Being clever is always worth it!

2020

[Sharon · Rating 5 out of 5]

This giggle inducing book introduces the reader to a sneaky old sensei who wants to test his warriors. He hides away in the dojo and creates a Ninjabread Man who will challenge them all. In the end, it's the meditating fox who seems to solve everyone's problems but where has that little old sensei disappeared to now?

[Kris · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh. The title is the best part. Even my 6-year old lost interest.

[Matthias · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think my life is complete now that I know this book exists!

[Stefanie Burns · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love fractured fairy tales and reading the different gingerbread stories is always entertaining. I find that my students love seeing and hearing the different variations in this classic story. In The Ninjabread Man, a sensei is making the cookie when he peeks into the oven too early and Ninjabread Man escapes. He runs away from the sensei's students until he meets Ninja Fox. Students will like making connections to the other versions of the gingerbread man they are familiar with.

As soon as I started reading this book, I thought that you would need to introduce some vocabulary to your younger or not experience in Martial Arts students. Surprisingly, Leigh thought of this and included a very appropriate Glossary at the end of the story. Great touch! The end also includes a recipe for the cookies the sensei make which I also enjoy.

Quick, fun read, with the added supports students would need all in one book.

[Joanne Roberts · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ninja twist on the traditional gingerbread man as expected. Popular with little boys. Predictable in its adherence to the traditional tale. Rhyming text, like the original, leads readers through a night of adventures.

[April Overly · Rating 5 out of 5]

I used this for a Taekwondo group story time and the kids were SUPER into it! Same great gingerbread story with some fun twists.

[Lisa Edwards · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a interesting take on the Gingerbread Man. It begins in some way as the classic tale in that the gingerbread cookie transitions from the mix of ingredients, baked in the oven, and then comes to life. In this story though, it is a sensei that creates him and the cookie appears to be a master ninja. He is to test the ninja students that the sensei is training. Through the Ninjabread Mans' mission he visits each individual ninja character. He proves his worth by outsmarting, outmaneuvering, and outfighting each opponent. Well, that is until he reaches the last student, a fox. Upon the Ninjabread Mans' arrival with each student, he had a intro that he would spout out prior to challenging them, this became slightly irritating as it consisted of several lines repeated several times in the story. When it came to the fox, the Ninjabread Man had met his match. Lets just say, he got out-foxed. This is a good story, I personally just found there to be too much and too often of the same part to be repeated. My daughter seemed to be bored with that a well.

[James Potts · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book. It is so creative! It shows a few animals studying to become ninjas. Their teacher bakes them cookies as a reward also known as a ninja bread cookies. Little does the teacher now the Ninja Bread Man would come to life and tries to defeat his whole class. This book was very creative. This would be a great book to read aloud with children. There are many different character’s that a teacher could do many different voices to keep students engaged. Also, teachers can bring in gingerbread cookies while reading this story. I would read this story more towards a Halloween or Christmas time. The pictures are very creative as well. I would ass this to my library.

[Alyssa Christy · Rating 4 out of 5]

There is no question as to why children chose this book as the winner of the Buckeye Children's Book Award! "The Ninjabread Man" by C.J. Leigh and illustrated by Chris Gall, is a thrilling spin off of the original Gingerbread Man stories. I liked how this story incorporated the original Ginderbread Man line "You can't catch me, I'm the Gingerbread Man," only adjusting it slightly to fit the new version of the story. I also liked that the story never comes out and tells you what happens to the Ninjabread man. It allows for good discussion during a read aloud. The end of the story ends on a cliffhanger, allowing for readers to come up with their own alternative endings.

[Mikayla Busse · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story was really entertaining to me. In this twist of the famous gingerbread man tale, a sensei bakes the cookie for his animal pupils. However, the cookie is determined in other aspects. In this story, the gingerbread man goes towards all of the animals and challenges them to a fight. C.J. Leigh changed the famous phrase, "You can't catch me! I'm the Gingerbread Man," to, "Try, try as best as you can, you can't beat me, I'm the Ninjabread Man!" This is a really good story about hard work and dedication.

[Silas · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think this book is good because the sensei makes a ninjabread man and as soon as he opens the oven, the ninjabread man pops out of the oven and he fought every single person or animal on the team. I'm giving this book three stars because it's just okay. It's just okay because every single gingerbread man, they're basically all the same and he always sings the same song. It just needs to be a little changed up. I do like redoing things and sometimes I like to reread books but that book is just a little bit too the same as other books.

[Lori C · Rating 4 out of 5]

Genre: Children's Picture Book - Folktale
Ages: K-3rd

I thought this book was really clever - from the title to the story. My young nephews love it and can listen to it over and over. I really like children's books that contain repetitive phrases. It's an easy way to get the kids to join the reading. I would hesitate to use this book in a classroom. There are throwing stars and swords and fancy ninja moves (not really but my nephews like to pretend that there are). There's a recipe in the back for ninjabread that I'd love to try!

[Mrs. Motz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sniff that's the smell of The Ninjabread man.Recently i read The Ninjabread man by C.j leigh and Chris gall. It is a great book and you should read it.
First you should read this book because you will LOVE the main character.
There are a lot of rhymes in this book. On page 24 he said try try as best as you cant you can't beat me i'm the Ninjabread man i got past sensei escaped in the night i dogged ninja bear in the pale moonlight i slipped past ninja snake and made ninja mouse ache and ill outfox you to i can i can. It is so funny the fox ate ninjabread man. You should read The Ninjabread man because you will love the main character,a lot of rhymes.


By wyatt

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

A retelling of the Gingerbread man story that is set in a hidden dojo and involves ninjas. It begins with a little old Sensei using an age-old recipe to craft a Ninjabread Man. The Ninjabread Man jumps out of the oven alive and kicking, but instead of running away, he rushes to challenge Ninja Bear, Ninja Snake, Ninja Mouse, and Ninja Fox. A familiar story set in an unusual setting that will appeal to little ones who enjoy picture books involving martial arts.

"Try, try, as best as you can, you can't beat me,
I'm the Ninjabread Man!"

[Morgan Bindas · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely love this book!! There is not a single thing that I did not like about it. This is a fun silly book, that got myself laughing. It starts with the original gingerbread man tale, with adding some ninja into it. This is great for children to get introduced to rhyming words as well, as it has some rhymes in it. I would read this to the students during Christmas time, as it relates to gingerbread men and we can tie it into the background of where gingerbread men came from.

[Lea Fabrizzi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought The Ninjabread man was an interesting book and not what I expected when I first went to read it. Overall, I think that is good for grades K-2 because it is a creative story about a gingerbread man trying to to beat and outrun the ninja animals in the story. As intriguing as the story is, it also challenges young minds just enough to get them thinking outside the box at the different possibilities, or like most children make them hungry for some gingerbread cookies. -Lea Fabrizzi

[Madeline Conzett · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was very funny and entertaining. This would be such a great book to get students involved with while reading, especially in grades k-2. This story shows example of facing your problems, for example when everyone encountered the ninjabread man. Everyone also worked together as a team. The illustrations are great and very engaging, and the little song the ninjabread man sings when he encounters someone is funny.

[Kyle Young · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Ninjabread Man by C.J. Leigh is an entertaining take on the classic fairy tale The Gingerbread Man. Only this time the cookie man is a dangerous ninja and is able to elude almost anyone. Leigh did a great job of reinventing this fairy tale for the children of today and making this story feel fresh even though it is based on a fairy tale most people have heard before. Chris Gall was the illustrator and he create wonderful pictures to go along with this story.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read this for a storytime; the kids were a little restless by the end and I am not sure they understood what happened to the Ninjabread Man (I asked them and they looked at me blankly; their grownups were explaining it to them in whispers...haha). If this was a bit shorter and the ending a bit clearer it would be a bigger hit.

[Gianna Campana · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book builds on itself. A baker is making gingerbread, but the ninjabread man escapes the oven. Then different types of gingerbread takes their tries in capturing the ninjabread man. This book was different than many of the children books I have read when considering the plot, and it was a nice twist on the original story.

[Marissa Dunbar · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the way this story goes along, the way it is worded. The illustrations are amazing! They go along with the story and help tell it and help draw you into the story because they are so vibrant and out there. A great rendition of the gingerbread man, I thought it was a pretty funny book as well!

[Morgan Czopur · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a funny spin-off of the original Gingerbread Man book. A recipe is made for the ninjabread, however, the cookie escapes and runs away! This book is action-packed and encounters many different people and things in order to catch this cookie! It would be a good book for children to read around Christmas time when other Christmas books are being read.

[Emily Metheny · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Ninjabread man has escaped! Will he be caught or out smart everyone? This is a great and funny spin off of the original Gingerbread man book. This is an adventurous book for children to read and have them laughing during each step of the way. It will keep them engaged and wanting to turn to the next page. Great Book!

[Mac Rizzuto · Rating 4 out of 5]

1st grade teacher here!

My class does a gingerbread theme and we read several books in December that have a similar story:
The gingerbread man
The gingerbread cowboy
The Ninjabread
The gingerbread Pirates
The gingerbread Girl
It is fun to compare and contrast the similarities, sequence the stories, and even write our own!

[Cristina B · Rating 4 out of 5]

Author: C.J. Leigh
Genre: Children's Fiction, Fairy tales, Fantasy
Grade level: PK-2
The story reminds me of a Japanese children's superhero "Anpanman." Ninja Bread Man and Anpanman were made from dough containing mysterious powers. However, Ninjaman is naughty and silly, which makes the story funny. Did he defeat the other ninjas?