15/August/2025
Calvin Dudley’s debut book, My Promise to Emily, published on Amazon on March 23rd, 2023, is a heart-touching narrative that highlights how adults can become great idols for their children, with the easiest way being keeping promises. The book doesn’t directly talk about it, but sheds light on it through the author’s own real-life moment that provided him with an insight into how powerful wordy commitments can be.

My Promise to Emily narrates a day from Calvin’s life that has the power to change how the world views promises and their impact, especially the ones made by adults to children. He made a promise to Emily, a thirteen-year-old girl, who was a total stranger. He made a promise to her not once, but twice. The first time he made the promise to give her his next catch on that mid-week fishing trip, but failed to keep it since it was one of his biggest catches. It hurt her, saddened her. The second time, he made the same promise out of guilt, despite the next catch being even bigger, he gave it to Emily, which made her the happiest. It restored her faith.

This is when he realized how his fulfillment of the promise to Emily might have portrayed a positive example for Emily that she would, too, someday adopt. It was how he was able to deduce that a simple act of keeping promises may be a quality that adults can adopt and become a positive role model, or an idol for both their own children and others.
“A promise is never ‘just a promise’ to them—it’s a building block for how they view relationships, honesty, and self-worth.”

-Calvin Dudley-
Children are like sponges. They soak in whatever they see, hear, and feel around them.

“Children remember more than we think.”
-Calvin Dudley-

My Promise to Emily by Calvin Dudley may just be ‘another’ edition to your list of books read, but it gives out a strong, yet important lesson for both children and adults because promises are for everyone, and everyone in this world wishes to have someone they can look up to, depend on, and see future-selves in them.

My Promise to Emily is now available on Amazon.

For More Information:
Website: calvindudley.store
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/My-Promise-Emily-Calvin-Dudley/dp/1669871460
Email: [email protected]

About Author

Calvin Dudley, also known as Mr. Dud, is an Exceptional Student Education (ESE) Specialist. He is an extremely dedicated and devoted educator with experience in handling and teaching children who are behaviorally challenged, or rather, said to be gifted.

These children just require a little more attention than the rest. His beliefs are deeply embedded in the power of compassion, kindness, trust, and integrity.

Dudley is also a storyteller and an author. My Promise to Emily is his debut book. He is passionate about shaping young lives. Through his teaching career, he has witnessed the impact of positive role models, who can play a major role in helping and facilitating children in becoming resilient and recognizing self-worth.

Through his first book, he aims to discuss the psychology of promises and how the impact of promises can be for children and the influence of these commitments on a child’s mind, heart, and overall personality.

He is an advocate of inspiring children and adults to live with integrity and spreads the word to never underestimate the power a promise can have.