St. Louis – Books from Friends Partners with Barnes & Noble & Becomes First in Nation to Create Custom Children’s Book

Allie All Along Debuted At Urban League Back To School EXPO On Saturday afternoon, August 21st, Assistance League of St. Louis provided St. Louis Public School children with a new customized children’s book by Sara Lynne Reul – ALLIE ALL ALONG. This book was one of several given to each St. Louis Public School child who attended the annual Urban League Back to School EXPO Drive-Through. The event was held at Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis’ headquarters,1408 North Kingshighway Blvd. 63113. At the event, Assistance League’s literacy program, Books From Friends volunteers, provided 5,500 new, age-appropriate books to the children, including over 800 copies of Allie All Along. In 2020-21, Books From Friends distributed over 15,000 new books to St. Louis Public School children. ALLIE ALL ALONG, with an engaging set of illustrations and storyline, has important themes on family engagement. “The custom book enables Assistance League to communicate with children and their families and provides questions to think about as the book is read aloud,” said Assistance League President Yolanda Perez-Cunningham. “The goal is to help children understand and process their feelings and to enhance social and emotional growth.” A special page in the book allows the children to write their names, as owners and readers. In addition to the books, volunteers also distributed 900 unique age-related activity kits to educate and entertain toddlers through high school. “Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis and Barnes & Noble have been invaluable partners with Assistance League of St. Louis and share a commitment to our community and to literacy,” Perez-Cunningham added .