Julie Black Belt Picture Book Review

Julie Black Belt Picture Book Review to Celebrate Multicultural Kid Lit Day and Chinese New Year

I received this book free from Immedium publishers in exchange for an honest review for Multicultural Kid Lit Day. Despite that, all the opinions stated herein are 100% my own.

Review of the Julie Blackbelt series. Supporting girls/women in the Marital arts. Published by Immedium Publishers for Multicultural Kid Lit day.

Julie Black Belt: The Kung Fu Chronicles

Title: Julie Black Belt: The Kung Fu Chronicles

Author: Oliver Chin

Illustrator: Charlene Chua

Publication Date: 2007

Publisher: Immedium

Review: There are so many reasons why the martial arts are fantastic for children, such as…

Discipline
Determination
Respect
Strength
Fitness
Self Esteem
Flexibility
Concentration
Hard work that gives results

In a sport that traditionally girls are not encouraged to pursue, wanting to be like her idol – TV star Brandy Wu, and encouraged by her parents – Julie enrolls in her first Kung Fu class. Julie was really excited to get the black belt, but her hopes were deflated when she learned that everyone starts with a white belt and only through hard work and patience (belt order- orange, green, blue, brown belts) she will achieve her goal. What she soon learns is that Kung Fu is much harder than Brandy Wu makes it look on TV. Exhausted from the hard work and ready to quit, Sifu (which means teacher in Chinese) whispers – a white belt is just a black belt that doesn’t quit.

Through sheer determination and hard work – she is able to achieve her goal of moving to the next level. As an added bonus, she had a lot of fun in the process.

Well written and beautifully illustrated, Julie Black Belt is the perfect inspiration for the young elementary age student (for children ages 5 and 6 years old).

I loved this book for a number of reasons. I think is this a great inspiration for girls as it promotes physical and mental strength. I think it’s a great introduction to the martial arts – which is a very honorable and helpful discipline for kids of all ages.

Julie Black Belt – The Belt of Fire

Title: Julie Black Belt – The Belt of Fire

Author: Oliver Chin

Illustrator: Charlene Chua

Publication Date: 2013

Publisher: Immedium

Review: This is a great sequel to Julie Black Belt: Kung Fu Chronicles. In this book, we find that Julie is working towards her next belt. However, a new kid moves to the area who is a bit better than the rest of the kids in the class. He kicks harder, screens louder and blocks better – and this makes Julie mad. In order to prepare for the next belt challenge, Sifu pairs the kids up. Julie is paired up with the best student in class. Instead of concentrating on their individual skills, they try to outdo one another. They soon learn that Kung Fu is about improving your own skills, not worrying about competing with others. Like the Yin and the Yang, you must work together in order to make your individual skills better.

This is a very important lesson, in this day and age where everything is turned into a competition. Yes, there may be people better than you – but you can use that to make your skills better.

This book stays true to the classic charm of Kung Fu Chronicles. We really enjoyed this book as a read aloud.

You can purchase Julie Black Belt on Amazon.

Julie Black Belt: Kung Fu Chronicles

Julie Black Belt: The Belt of Fire

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