Noted authors Elana M. Neely and Dr. Willie H. Smith were the featured speakers at the MLK Day Book Nook Dedication and Book Giveaway held Jan. 13 at the Charles Houston Recreation Center.

The event was sponsored by the Alexandria Chapter of the NAACP in partnership with the Alexandria West Rotary Club.

“We want to promote literacy for all children but we think it is specifically necessary to support that effort with minority students,” said the NAACP’s Keisha Culbreth Brooks. “We are making sure that they understand what it is to be literate and how many doors books can open for you.”

Neely and Smith each read excerpts from their books. Neely is the author of the value-based children’s book series entitled “Blessons for Living,” which combines “shared lessons are a blessing = BLESSONS.” The books encompass 30 life lessons taught in a way that a child would understand. 

Smith read from “Eighth Chop From the Top,” an autobiography that chronicles his beginnings in rural North Carolina through his career with the federal government. The book is described as “a compelling story of culture, environment, race, and a range of encounters of a black man in the United States during a time of opportunity and change.”

“We wanted to have authors come in today and be representative of individuals who look like them,” Brooks said.

Prior to the event, organizers had collected donated books by Black authors, which were distributed to children as part of the Book Nook dedication.

“We know that with technology advancements these children have devices and so many other things that they can be doing,” Brooks said. “But the touch, the tactile piece of a book, is just something that we are losing and we want to make sure children understand the significance and importance of books.”