Yesterday I cleared my day to research The New England Book Awards.  The deadline to apply is in November 2013 so right away I felt lucky that I had not missed the deadline.  I submitted an entry for Some Parts are NOT for Sharing and Anger is OKAY Violence is NOT.  Below is my application page for Anger is OKAY Violence is NOT. I entered it in the How-to category with the hopes of being different.  I know I will be surrounded by books such as; “How to design a successful start up company. “How to Tweet your way onto The New York Times Best Seller List.” and such.  No one is talking about how to prevent domestic violence.  I am! And I can not think of a better way to spend my time.   Anger is OKAY Violence is NOT  is a How-to book on, “How to prevent domestic violence.”  It is for readers ages 0-7 years.  The book talks about anger control for young children which everyone needs more information on. Replacement behaviors are offered rather than just instructing children to “Stop it!” or “Cut it out now or else!”  Woven into the text is a subtle message for children living in homes where domestic violence is present.  The book instructs children that it is not okay to hurt others, and what to do if someone is hurting you.  Readers are encouraged to “Tell a trusted adult.” The judicial system is punitive at best for women who report domestic violence.  There are a multitude of reasons not to report if you are a woman without large financial resources to pay for a qualified lawyer.  Somehow the innocence of children and the pure truth coming through in their report without the baggage that an adult report carries brings justice. According to the National Network to End Domestic Violence 8,800,000 children every year under the age of 18 witness acts of domestic violence.  This static is for North America alone sadly. My goal in writing the book is to change this.  If children live with violence at a young age they begin to think it is normal.  Thus continuing the cycle of violence. With the information in Anger is OKAY Violence is NOT children have the knowledge from an unbiased source that violence is wrong.  They are also instructed about how to get help.  My dream would be for every law enforcement squad car to have a copy of this book in their trunk.  When officers went on a domestic violence call they would leave the book if there were children in the home.  I believe officers know sometimes there is violence going on in the home, but they do not file a report biased on lack of evidence.  Teachers and school personnel are mandatory reporters when they have information that a child is being harmed.  That is why I had the fish approach his teacher with the news of the violence.   Winning the New England Book Festival would be a thrill!  But the greater pleasure I would gain from this award is knowing that more children would now have access to my prevention message.  This is a message of hope that so many children need. Thank you for your consideration of Anger is OKAY Violence is NOT for an entry in the How-to category for The New England Book Awards. Sincerely, Julie Federico