The Mom’s Choice Awards Names "I Am Happy" Children's Tale Among Best in Family-Friendly Products

Sept. 4, 2013 - PRLog -- Ottawa, Ontario –

“Hello! My name is Angela, and I am so happy.”

So begins this delightful tale of this little girl who sees the world through eyes of gratitude and love. Angela appreciates the seemingly ordinary in her life – her room, her toys, her family, her neighbours, her friends, her school, and perhaps most importantly, herself. Through her innocent gaze, we too begin to appreciate the beauty and grace that already fill our lives.

The Mom’s Choice Awards® (MCA) is an international awards program that recognizes authors, inventors, companies, parents and others for their efforts in creating quality family-friendly media, products and services.

Parents, educators, librarians and retailers look for the Mom’s Choice Awards Honoring Excellence seal of approval when selecting quality materials for children and families.

“This tale is a labour of love,” say the authors. “It was inspired by our daughter Sylvana, and the values we are trying to instill in her. Love of self, above all else. Gratitude for all that exists in her life. And never forgetting that wonder and magic fill our world – when we look for them.”

At this year’s International Latino Book Awards (http://www.lbff.us/bookawards14thnewyork.php), I Am Happy won the Mariposa Award, given to a Latino writer who has achieved excellence with his or her first book. The book’s Spanish version, Soy Feliz, received an Honorable Mention for Best Children’s Fiction Picture Book.

Mony and Alberto are also international award-winners of Walking for Peace, an inner journey, memoir of the couple’s 5000-kilometre, 13-country, 13-month walking pilgrimage for peace. Further details can be found on their site http://walkingforpeace.com.

Alberto is a self-taught artist and illustrator who has exhibited his artwork in his native Spain. His artistic creations are inspired by his many pilgrimages, the most notable being the Camino to Santiago in northern Spain and his 5000-kilometre, 13-country, 13-month walk for peace with his partner Mony.

Mony formalized her studies in Canada with an MBA from Queen’s University and, for ten years, pursued a marketing career in the software industry before abandoning it to embark on a search for self. She met Alberto on the Camino in 2001 and, together, they walked from Rome to Jerusalem, on their pilgrimage for peace.

An esteemed panel of judges for the MCA includes education, media and other experts as well as parents, children, librarians, performing artists, producers, medical and business professionals, authors, scientists and others. A sampling of the panel members includes: Dr. Twila C. Liggett, ten-time Emmy-winner, professor and founder of PBS’s Reading Rainbow; Julie Aigner-Clark, Creator of Baby Einstein and The Safe Side Project; Jodee Blanco, New York Times best-selling author, Priscilla Dunstan, creator of the Dunstan Baby Language; Patricia Rossi, host of NBC’s Manners Minute; Dr. Letitia S. Wright, D.C., host of the Wright Place™ TV Show; and Catherine Witcher, M.Ed., special needs expert and founder of Precision Education, Inc.

MCA judges are bound by a strict code of ethics which ensures expert and objective analysis free from any manufacturer association. The evaluation process uses a propriety methodology in which entries are scored on a number of elements including production quality, design, educational value, entertainment value, originality, appeal and cost.

To be considered for an award, each entrant submits five identical samples of a product. Entries are matched to judges in the MCA database. Judges perform a thorough analysis and submit a detailed assessment. Results are compiled and submitted to the MCA Executive Committee for final approval. The end result is a list of the best in family-friendly media, products and services that parents and educators can feel confident in using.

For more information on the awards program, visit http://MomsChoiceAwards.com.

For more information on all the books published by the authors, please visit their website http://walkingforpeace.com.

Images available upon request.