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How do adults find the words to alert kids about sexual abuse? How do parents and guardians protect children from pedophiles? This book adds a tool to the arsenal against sexual abuse. Read, read, read to your children, so that they are empowered and more likely to tell, tell, tell.
Obviously, parents can't be with their children all the time. So, when leaving children on playdates, at school, or at Uncle's house, the kids must understand what abuse is and how to stop it or prevent it. Who can better guide parents and guardians than someone who has had it happen to them? Livingston reflects on what might have helped her to stop her abuser sooner and what clues were ignored that might have helped her and her parents to avoid or stop the abuse.
Livingston writes starkly and bluntly. It is a talent and a rarity to write such a book without using several euphemisms and innuendos while trying to explain the risks. The important part is that reading this children's book even before children know what you are talking about will help empower them to recognize and stop inappropriate touching. The author was 10 years old before she formed the words to tell her abuser to stop, and she was a 30-year-old before she told anyone else. This cycle must end, and Livingston knows how to help end it.
The book has beautiful and colorful drawings of a family in happy and safe situations but also situations and outings that are most likely to lead to stranger danger as well as predatory relatives or friends. The pictures are cheerful and upbeat but can also trigger children to speak up if they have something that they need to tell.