Disclaimer: I was provided a free copy of this book as thanks for writing this review. But I purchased and read a copy of the book prior to deciding to do the review. All opinions are my own – I truly love this book! 🙂

Ella started karate class after Brody Koski hit her at recess.

I want to learn to punch and kick really hard,” I said to Sensei Jordan before my first class. “I want to punch and kick harder than Brody Koski!”

Sensei Jordan looked straight in my eyes and told me that she was not going to teach me how to start fights. “You’re smart, and you’re strong, Ella. The smartest and strongest people stop fights,” she said.”

Ella Builds A Wall

When fellow personal finance blogger and friend, Ruth McKeague, shared the trailer for her new children’s book, Ella Builds A Wall, I knew I had to have a copy.

I happen to have the perfect opportunity to share this book with many kids who would benefit from the lessons in the book. As a black belt in Tae Kwon Do, I see many kids start martial arts for the exact reason Ella started karate.

They’ve been bullied or teased. They don’t feel like they fit in. They feel powerless.

What they want is to feel strong, gain confidence, and effectively deal with the sense of powerlessness.

But, just like Ella, these kids don’t need to learn to fight. They need to learn the skills and tools to enable them to build the right walls and stop problems. They need to build confidence and learn how to work with, openly include, and accept others. They also need to learn to pay attention.

In the book, not only does Ella learn to defend herself and stop a fight, she learns to pay attention. And by paying attention, she begins to recognize jealousy, anger and danger. She starts to understand her own feelings and empathize with others.

(Even as adults we tend to be reactive when faced with adversity. And many times, that knee-jerk, reactive response can complicate an already complicated situation. By taking the time to pay attention, to be thoughtful and proactive, we can better deal with sticky situations.)

What kids will learn from this book

This book is chock full of important lessons kids can use. They see how talking about and getting help with problems is important. They’ll also learn the importance of paying attention, stopping trouble, and standing up for others.

This story makes it easy to talk to your kids about the issues that they will inevitably deal with each and every day. It will help you start the conversation and talk about how to build the “walls” that will help them and take down the destructive walls that could hurt them.

I can’t say it any better than this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1gkNjCTU7s

Every kid can relate to this book. Whether they’re being bullied, socially isolated or expressing inner conflict by bullying others, this book will help them decide which walls to build and which ones to tear down.

You can order your copy of the book right here! Keep in mind, the cost and shipping is in CAD (not USD). The overall cost ends up being about $15.00 USD.

Many thanks to Ruth for this amazing book!

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