E Is for Ethics: How to Talk to Kids About Morals, Values, and What Matters Most »

Ian James Corlett is the author of E IS FOR ETHICS and E IS FOR ENVIRONMENT. He is well known in the world of children's television and has created, written for, and/or developed many popular children's series, such as The Adventures of Paddington Bear, Rolie Polie Olie, Will & Dewitt, and his namesake series, Being Ian. Ian is also a renowned voice actor. He is the voice for literally hundreds of animated characters as diverse as Baby Taz of the Baby Looney Tunes and Dad in Johnny Test. The father of two and husband of one for more than twenty-five years, he currently resides in Vancouver, British Columbia, and Palm Springs, California.

R.A. "Riley" Holt is a Canadian illustrator, designer, and artist who lives in Vancouver. Riley is proficient in a wide range of styles and uses many different mediums in his broad spectrum of artwork.

Teaching children ethics, values, and morals has become a real challenge for parents today. These topics aren't usually covered in school curriculums, and many families no longer attend religious services, so most modern moms and dads are clamoring for a helping hand.

Ian James Corlett, an award-winning children's TV writer, was inspired to write this book as his own family grappled with this issue. When Ian's two kids were very young, he and his wife started a weekly discussion period he dubbed "Family Fun Time." Every Monday after dinner, they all sat down and Ian would tell his two kids tales about two young children, Elliott and Lucy, who were much like them.

- They hated going to the dentist.

- They were disappointed when a favorite aunt couldn't visit.

- They dreaded raking the leaves in their backyard.

Ian's kids really looked forward to these talks and they hardly even realized that the stories were serving a deeper purpose — to teach tact, understanding, and responsibility. So he decided to write these stories down to help other parents — like you. The result is in your hands: twenty-six simple, clear, original, and entertaining stories for you to read aloud with your child.

Teaching your children values, life skills, and ethics has never been so much fun!

Publishers Weekly

When their two children were young, kids’ TV writer and animator Corlett and his wife initiated a weekly family after-dinner discussion to explain and foster ethical and moral values. Admitting that he is a plain old dad and not a Ph.D. in ethics, Corlett nonetheless felt obliged to address the void in moral education left as school and even Sunday school curricula stopped routinely teaching ethics for “it seems no one wants to touch the subject of right and wrong anymore.” He developed two charming and lovably humorous characters—Elliot and his sister, Lucy—and 26 story situations that take place in families, at school, in team sports and in the community, each of which demonstrates a different ethic ranging from honesty and understanding through forgiveness, courage and perseverance to loyalty, gratitude, fairness and acceptance. Even citizenship, generosity, trust and respect are covered as Elliot and Lucy encounter life’s moral predicaments. Each of the 250-word “lessons” is followed by a “what would you do?” kind of question, the definition of a moral quality with accompanying short commentary and a pertinent famous quote or two, which together point youngsters toward doing the right thing and understanding why. Most likely to be well received by younger kids, this charming, interactive little book is appropriate for kids preschool to tween age and their parents. (Dec.)