Chef Alexander Smalls Shares ‘Origin Story’ in Debut Children’s Book (Exclusive)

Alexander Smalls is cooking up a sweet new book.

The James Beard Award-winning chef is set to publish his debut children’s book, When Alexander Graced the Table, early next year. Co-written with bestselling author Denene Millner, and set to be published by her book imprint, Denene Millner Books, the project will hit shelves in January.

Featuring illustrations from Frank Morrison, the book is a celebration of family and tradition, per its description. Young Alexander always looks forward to weekly Sunday dinners, where his whole family gathers after church to share a meal together. When he’s tasked with preparing his own dish for the first time, he must figure out how to make a meal that will satisfy his family.

Smalls, a renowned opera singer who won a Grammy and Tony Award for the cast recording of Porgy and Bess, is already a published author. His memoir and cookbook Grace The Table, which features recipes from his childhood in South Carolina, was published in 1997, and his cookbook Meals, Music, and Muses: Recipes from My African American Kitchen was published in 2020. His 2018 cookbook Between Harlem and Heaven, written with JJ Johnson and Veronica Chambers, won the James Beard Award for Best American Cookbook.

Smalls, who regularly appears on The TODAY Show and Food Network shows, tells PEOPLE that his new book is based on his own childhood experiences.

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“When Alexander Graced the Table is a love letter to my parents, Alexander and Johnnie Mae Smalls, my upbringing in a close-knit southern family, our Gullah Geechie culture and customs and, of course, my delight in using food to build community and connection,” Smalls says. “It really is a children’s depiction of my origin story, one that I’ve long wanted to bring to the page.”

When Alexander Graced the Table will bring Smalls’s passion for cooking to a younger audience — as well as some new recipes too.

“The bonus is that children everywhere will be able to read this story and think about all the ways that same love that encouraged and enriched me as a child runs through their families, too,” Smalls continues. “And they’re going to love that recipe for the Lemon Ice Box Pie!”

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