By Ken Roberts / City Editor
Around 10,000 schoolchildren now have access to free books that promote Alabama’s literary history.
School libraries in the 13 counties that make up the Black Belt received the books through the Bicentennial Bookshelf program, made possible through a partnership of the University of Alabama Center for Economic Development, the UA School of Library and Information Studies and the Alabama Cooperative Extension System.
Candace Johnson, tourism and community development director with UA’s Center for Economic Development, said the Bicentennial Bookshelf will “connect the students with resources that were inspired by the rich history of Alabama that included unexpected adventure, mystery and suspense as well as some of the author’s own childhood experiences while growing up in rural Alabama.
“It is our hope that the children relate to the characters and an increased love of reading may come out of this project or at least the curiosity to explore some of what Alabama has to offer,” Johnson said.
Books selected for the Bicentennial Bookshelf include “13 Alabama Ghosts and Jeffrey,” by Kathryn Tucker Windham, “Can I Touch Your Hair?” by Irene Latham and “Gone Crazy in Alabama,” by Rita Williams-Garcia, among others. The program is also part of the state’s bicentennial celebration.
The books are designed to appeal to middle school students and cover such genres as historical, adventurous fiction and science fiction. Sets of the selected books have been prominently displayed in libraries at Black Belt schools as the new school year gets underway.
Alabama’s Black Belt is named for its dark, rich soil and includes some of the poorest counties in the nation. Along with high rates of poverty, declining populations and high unemployment, access to educational resources is a major concern for the future of K-12 students in the region, which include Bullock, Butler, Choctaw, Dallas, Greene, Hale, Lowndes, Macon, Marengo, Perry, Pickens, Sumter and Wilcox counties.
