LeVar Burton – yes, the LeVar Burton – paid a special visit to our Central Children’s Library this past Friday to read to a group of kids from the Derrick Thomas Academy. It was like an episode of Reading Rainbow come to life. But you don’t have to take our word for it! Follow the “Read More” link to see a video of LeVar in the Library with friends, including local author and musician Shane Evans.

The buzz around Burton’s February 18 appearance at the Kansas City Public Library couldn’t have been higher. LeVar’s name lit up the local twittersphere as dozens of the Library’s friends on Twitter and Facebook participated in our contest to meet Burton by sharing the titles of their favorite books. The five winners, chosen at random, brought friends and family to watch LeVar read in the Library and then meet with him one-on-one for photos and autographs.

In short, it was a remarkable day – one that was absolutely all about reading.

-- Jason Harper