LeVar Burton Reads | |
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Presentation | |
Hosted by | LeVar Burton |
Genre | |
Created by | LeVar Burton |
Written by | Various |
Language | English |
Production | |
No. of episodes | 207 |
Publication | |
Original release | June 13, 2017 – May 6, 2024 |
Ratings | 4.837837837837838/5 |
Provider | Stitcher |
Related | |
Website | www |
LeVar Burton Reads was a podcast hosted by LeVar Burton, where he read a piece of short fiction and shared his thoughts on it.[1] Following its launch in 2017, it won numerous awards and received favorable reviews.[2][3][4][5][6]
Burton is well-known for his acting career, which included Roots and Star Trek: The Next Generation, and also for hosting Reading Rainbow, a long-running children’s television show on PBS.[3][7] In reviews, LeVar Burton Reads has been described as “Reading Rainbow for adults.” [4][2]
In each 30-45-minute episode, Burton reads a short work of fiction.[3] Music and sound design are added to create a full sensory experience.[5] “What audio storytelling does is it engages the listener in a way that visual storytelling does not. You are creating the visuals for yourself, and because of that additional level of personal investment, it’s enjoyable on a different level,” Burton told The Verge.[6]
Burton and his producer choose all the stories based on personal taste. “The primary consideration for a story to be selected is that I love it,” he told Los Angeles.[3] The show has included works by Stephen King, Toni Morrison, Kurt Vonnegut, Octavia Butler, Neil Gaiman, Joan Aiken, Haruki Murakami, Nnedi Okorafor, John Chu, and Oscar Casares, among others.[8][3][1]
The podcast concluded on May 6, 2024, with Burton reading "The Toynbee Convector" by Ray Bradbury as his final selection. After sharing his thoughts on the story, Burton delivered a farewell message encouraging listeners to "keep reading, keep expanding, keep living in your imaginations; that is the fuel that is going to power the commitment necessary to dream big and change the world."