Most weeks we talk about books and being a booklover in terms of exciting new releases or the ways in which writers create their imagined worlds and the characters who inhabit them. But today we are talking about how books can literally change lives because books are a business and can generate income.

In this week’s episode, we speak to Elizabeth Senn-Alvey, executive director of Emerging Workforce Initiative, a nonprofit in Louisville that targets ways to help marginalized youth who have systemic or personal issues that could impede their journey into the workforce and develop marketable skills. One of the programs they offer is The Book Works.

The Book Works is a social enterprise, which is a program that helps address local teens and young adults unmet needs such as poverty, homelessness, and limited education through a market-driven approach; or in other words teaching through learning a business.

The folks at Emerging Workforce Initiative were inspired by More Than Words in Boston; a youth program that for 20 years has empowered young people to take charge of a business and their lives through books.

So we take a look at how our secondhand books in the Louisville community have helped young people in our city.

The Book Works Sale takes place September 18-19. Go to their website for more details.

You can find The Book Works on instagram at @thebookworkslou or on Facebook at The Book Works Louisville. Their website is www.thebookworks.org.

Books mentioned in this episode:

1- Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer