A story lies at end of the rainbow
If there is such a thing as an expert in children’s literature, LeVar Burton is it.
As host of the award-winning PBS program Reading Rainbow, Burton spent more than three decades from the 1980s instilling a love of reading in kids all over the world, flipping through thousands of colourful texts and promising his young audience that a good book would allow them to “go anywhere.”
But it was only recently that the 57-year-old decided to take all of his considerable experience and channel it into his own children’s story, set for release on Oct. 7.
“It was just a matter of time before I had the space and the grace in my life to write a children’s book,” Burton told Postmedia in a recent interview.
“I have to say, I enjoyed this an awful lot. It was a lot more fluid than I ever thought it would be.”
The book, titled The Rhino Who Swallowed a Storm, begins by introducing readers to Mica Mouse, who is frightened by thunder. In an effort to comfort her, her father begins to read her the story of a young rhinoceros who is overwhelmed by a storm that sweeps away everything he loves. He swallows the storm, but that just makes him feel worse so he sets off on a journey that brings him into contact with various characters who eventually help him to release the turmoil inside. Mica Mouse, in turn, is calmed by the tale within a tale.
In a brief message destined for adults at the beginning of the book, Burton remarks that in a world filled with hatred, violence and confusion, he wanted to “give parents and their children a safe haven to discuss feelings and emotions that may be hard to express.”
A page at the end of the story provides a list of questions to help move those discussions along.
The affable Burton, known for his role as Kunte Kinte on Roots and to science fiction fans as Star Trek’s Lieutenant-Commander Geordi La Forge, teamed up with illustrator Courtenay Fletcher and poet Susan Schaefer Bernardo to complete the project. He had previously written a novel (Aftermath) for an adult audience in 1997, but describes that experience as “pretty solitary and terrifying.”
“I was far less afraid beginning this project,” Burton said.
“I worked very closely with Susan and Courtenay from Day 1. They allowed me into their creative process, so that was really exciting and stimulating for me.”
Today’s children are digital citizens, he said, so that’s where educators and authors need to engage with them.
“I’m really happy that (The Rhino Who Swallowed a Storm) is being printed and will be available in a hardcover edition, as I’m a firm believer in both (mediums), but as a realist and somewhat of a futurist, I genuinely believe that sooner or later, we’ll have to stop cutting down trees to make books.”
Reading Rainbow, meanwhile, remains a huge part of Burton’s life. When the long-running program went off the air in 2006, he was unwilling to let it vanish completely and acquired the rights to the Reading Rainbow brand in order to resurrect it as an iPad app in 2012. The digital reincarnation was an instant hit, leading Burton to dream even bigger. Last summer, he launched an online crowdfunding campaign that quickly raised more than $5.4 million, far more than the initial goal of $1 million. The money will be used to extend Reading Rainbow’s reach into other digital realms (such as gaming consoles, Android devices and the web) and to make the show’s digital library available for free to classrooms across the United States. Reading Rainbow also is moving into publishing, with The Rhino Who Swallowed a Storm the first title to be released under the iconic brand’s name. Burton says it will not be the last.