Julie Black Belt
Reviewed By: Eli
Location: Edmonton, AB
Rating: 5 out of 5

Hello. My book is Julie Black Belt, which just came out. Like most kids, Julie likes playing video games and bossing around her younger brother. When her parents ask her to take a kung fu class, Julie agrees because she wants to become a master fast, like her movie star idol Brandy Wu, and get a black belt in no time flat.

Instead of being a old wise man, her teacher is a young guy who bursts Julie's bubble: she has to start at the bottom and keep practicing. Now Julie questions why she's doing this in the first place. Eventually she realizes that learning is more important than the color of the belt you wear.

I've started taking an after school class in taekwondo. It is harder than it looks, so my parents got me this story. Since I have a white belt, I understand what Julie is going through. Plus the anime style illustrations by Charlene Chua are really cool and look like animation quality. I haven't seen many martial arts books, so this one is probably one of the best out there.