K-8 Novels
Black Belt Dream series: (click to purchase)
My children discovered TaeKwonDo in their junior high years. I followed their path a year later. We learned so many valuable life lessons it only seemed fitting to write them down.
Amy Zubara also discovers TKD at the end of 5th grade and uses her new found knowledge to survive the turbulant junior high years.
First Steps
“Could my dream come true?”
Swim team, softball, soccer. Eleven-year-old Amy Zubara has tried them all… and failed. Her brothers and sister thrived in team sports, while Amy spent years encouraging from the sidelines wondering if her family would ever be proud of her.
One Saturday in May, as she cheered her brothers in yet another baseball game, she caught a glimpse of a Tae Kwon Do demonstration. Amy loved Martial Arts movies. Dreams of flying through the air to break a board danced in her head. But those wisps of fantasy were out of reach, right?
After starting sixth grade, Amy learns of dangers lurking in the school halls. Something had to be done to stop them. If only she could be that brave. There was no way she could be that coordinated or that powerful… or could she?
Perseverance
“I can make my dream come true.”
White, Yellow, Orange, Green. Sixth grader Amy Zubara worked hard over the last seven months to move up in the Tae Kwon Do belt ranks. Through weekly classes, practices, and tournaments, Amy learned to stand tall and be strong in the face of adversity. In each level, she has discovered more about herself and her new sport.
Amy made a promise to herself to reach black belt. Four colors down, five more to go. Her family supports her activities, but not everyone in junior high is happy about it. Why can’t she do her preferred science project? How can she help her sick neighbor?
Can Amy prove to her teachers she isn’t the new school bully? All eyes are wondering what she will do next.
With school getting harder, can Amy juggle her responsibilities while continuing on her journey?
Indomitable Spirit
“Will I reach my dream?”
Brown, Temporary Black, Black Belt. The goal is in sight for seventh-grader Amy Zubara, but each color takes more work and longer preparation.
Fighting bullies and facing fears, seventh grader Amy Zubara has traveled a long way towards earning a black belt. Then on a family trip, she faces dangers she never expected. Fists cannot battle bullets. Amy must lean not only on her training but her new-found confidence to outwit and protect herself.
She returns home to face a distinct danger. After battling many outside challenges, Amy discovers the real enemy is found within. Heartbroken from a death in the family, emotions and despair swirl around her. Can Amy find a way to move forward? Can she find a way to continue on her path, to reach her dream?
Does she have the Indomitable Spirit needed to rise through all odds to be a Tae Kwon Do black belt?