The BEST episodes of Reading Rainbow
Every episode of Reading Rainbow ever, ranked from best to worst by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The best episodes of Reading Rainbow!
Host LeVar Burton shepherds children through the exciting world of books with celebrity guest narrations, youth book reviews, and relevant cultural tie-ins.
#1 - Liang and the Magic Paintbrush
Season 1 - Episode 7 - Aired 6/14/1983
LeVar goes to Chinatown for a look at Chinese culture. In something completely different, a New York technology institute draws a traditional Chinese dragon boat.
#2 - And Still the Turtle Watched
Season 11 - Episode 9 - Aired 10/21/1993
LeVar discusses how people can help to preserve animals and plants in nature that are in danger of extinction. Stories profiled include scientists working to improve the bald eagle population by raising chicks and re-releasing them into the mountains, and an elementary school class that decides to plant trees in their neighborhood. Michael Ansara narrates an unusual story, told from the viewpoint of a turtle sculpture carved in a rock, and how he wishes to preserve the history of Manatoo native Americans, despite being vandalized and thought to be ignored by later generations after he was carved.
#3 - Fly Away Home
Season 14 - Episode 1 - Aired 10/8/1995
Homelessness is discussed as families have lost jobs and homes through tragic circumstances. One family, who lost their home in a fire and now reside in a shelter, is profiled. Daniel Saltzman reads Fly Away Home, the story of a young boy and his father who secretly live at the airport after the father lost his job and they became homeless when the boy's mother died, so they couldn't pay their rent. The little boy finds a lost bird flying around the terminal and helps it get back outside.
#4 - June 29, 1999
Season 11 - Episode 10 - Aired 10/22/1993
What's fact and what's fiction? What's the truth and what's absurd? LeVar looks into unusual stories and tries to distinguish the actual news from fabrications. Charles Kimbrough reads a story (set in the future from the time the show was originally broadcast) about a young girl's science experiment to grow vegetable seeds in space, and how weeks later the country was inundated with giant plants falling from the sky.
#5 - Nosey Mrs. Rat
Season 12 - Episode 1 - Aired 10/3/1994
Observing people is the theme of the day, as LeVar finds himself with time to kill before a business meeting and chooses to watch children at a playground while he waits.
#6 - Borreguita and the Coyote
Season 12 - Episode 2 - Aired 10/4/1994
LeVar spends the day in a barrio in East Los Angeles studying Mexican culture as he visits friends who make their own guitars, eats some traditional food, and discusses the cultural differences that are practiced in both Mexico and the US. Olga Merediz reads Borreguita and the Coyote, the tale of a clever lamb who continually outsmarts a coyote determined to eat her.
#7 - Summer
Season 12 - Episode 3 - Aired 10/5/1994
In this episode of Reading Rainbow, Levar shows the kids the different sights and sounds of Summer. The different wildlife of Summer, and how they live. Also, there are segments on the different seasons and how they effect different parts of the country. The featured book is "Summers" written by Ron Hirschi, and read by Ossie Davis.
#8 - Once There Was a Tree
Season 12 - Episode 4 - Aired 10/6/1994
There is still use to a tree stump, as the feature book entails. Eli Wallach reads the story about the lifetime of a tree, and how different animals and people made use of the tree during its many stages, from sapling to tall tree to a cut down stump.
#9 - Appelemando's Dreams
Season 12 - Episode 5 - Aired 10/7/1994
Creativity is the theme as LeVar spends the day painting a mural and other artwork. Michael Learned tells the story of Appelemondo, a boy whose daydreams were so vivid that they could be seen developing above his head, and how his friends learned how to capture the dreams to make beautiful paintings to decorate their town.
#10 - The Lotus Seed
Season 12 - Episode 6 - Aired 10/10/1994
Young people who emigrated to the United States from Asian countries are interviewed and discuss having to learn a new language and fitting in with other children their age while dealing with language and cultural barriers. Rona Figueroa reads the story of The Lotus Seed, about a woman who flees her native country during wartime and manages to save only one memento, a lotus seed given to her by her mother from the garden she tended for the emperor.
#11 - Hail to Mail
Season 12 - Episode 7 - Aired 10/11/1994
LaVar explains the postal service and shows how important mail as a form of communication.
#12 - Stellaluna
Season 12 - Episode 8 - Aired 10/12/1994
LaVar discusses bats and the importance of sleep. The featured story is of a bat who is separated from her family and adopted by a bird.
#13 - My Shadow
Season 12 - Episode 9 - Aired 10/13/1994
In this episode of Reading Rainbow: Levar shows the kids how shadows and lights make up our everyday lives. Andrea Davis is featured as a photographer who shoots different parts of the city and develops the pictures in her own studio. Also, the children review the books SHADOWS AND REFLECTIONS I HAVE A FRIEND and SHADOW GRAPHS.
#14 - Ruth Law Thrills a Nation
Season 12 - Episode 10 - Aired 10/14/1994
Once again the show looks into firsts in air travel, recounting great pilots such as Bessie Coleman, Amelia Earhart and the featured book's heroine, Ruth Law. Linda Lavin narrates the story of Ruth Law, who traveled from Chicago to New York City in a single engine airplane, without benefit of headlights to keep the weight down, in the early 20th century, in two days.
#15 - The Wonderful Towers of Watts
Season 13 - Episode 1 - Aired 10/2/1995
LaVar visits Watts, a neighborhood in Los Angeles. The featured story is about Simon Rhodia and The Watts Towers. Also featured are young Watts residents trying to make the neighborhood a better place.
#16 - Martha Speaks
Season 13 - Episode 2 - Aired 10/3/1995
Martha Speaks is a funny story of a dog who magically develops the ability to speak after eating alphabet soup. This amusing story teaches a subtle lesson in manners and has a happy outcome. Learn about dogs in movies and see life from a dog's view. See amazing dog tricks.
#17 - Alejandro's Gift
Season 13 - Episode 3 - Aired 10/4/1995
Alejandro gives the gift of water to various desert animals. Also includes Desert Scenes, At the Oasis, Niagara Falls and book reviews for It Rained on the Desert Today, The Desert Alphabet Book and Water, Water Everywhere.
#18 - The Sign Painter's Dream
Season 13 - Episode 4 - Aired 10/5/1995
LeVar is back in New York (as he always seems to be), this time on Broadway. It's a sign mecca, and part of this program shows the making of a huge advertisement. Jamie Farr tells the story about a cranky sign painter who has a revelation about his job when he's asked to commission a sign for free as a good gesture.
#19 - Archibald Frisby
Season 13 - Episode 5 - Aired 10/6/1995
LeVar gets in his share of scientific method while at an amusement park. He answers questions by observing and using trial and error. Along the way, we learn how different kinds of scientists find answers to their own questions. Arnold Stang reads the featured tale about a young boy, obsessed with science and mathematics, whose mother sends him to summer camp to help him improve his social skills, but his scientific knowledge helps him learn even more, and makes him into a camp hero when he figures out how to win the softball game by calculating trajectories.
#20 - Uncle Jed's Barber Shop
Season 14 - Episode 2 - Aired 10/9/1995
LeVar visits his favorite barbershop for a trim, and reads the featured book while waiting his turn. Regina Taylor tells the story of how Uncle Jed, who had a dream of owning his own barbershop and kept saving up despite several financial setbacks, including the bank crash at the start of the Great Depression, finally achieved his goal at the age of 79.
#21 - Through Moon and Stars and Night Skies
Season 10 - Episode 9 - Aired 10/15/1992
What is it like to be adopted? In what may be the high point of the 10th season, this show has a lengthy sequence about adopted children in families. Andrew Lei narrates Through Moon and Stars and Night Skies, a story about a boy who was adopted by a pair of parents who wanted a child very much.
#22 - Snowy Day: Stories and Poems
Season 9 - Episode 10 - Aired 9/27/1991
LeVar travels to Jackson Hole, Wyoming. It is a perfect spot for a few poetry readings and winter observations. Some of which include sledding down hills, playing in the snow, building snow-people, and even meeting someone who races in the famous Iditarod.
#23 - Tar Beach
Season 10 - Episode 1 - Aired 10/5/1992
LeVar's presence looms over New York once again, this time literally. He's taken to the roof of one of the nondescript skyscrapers, very close to the bridge mentioned in the featured book, Tar Beach.
#24 - The Wall
Season 10 - Episode 2 - Aired 10/6/1992
LeVar visits the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington DC, and discusses its historical significance to helping people learn about the service men and woman who died in the war. Artist Mia Lin, who designed the black granite wall, is profiled as she describes the reasons she chose the materials and design style for the monument. Jason Ruggiero reads the featured story of a boy who accompanies his father to the monument to search for his paternal grandfather's name on the wall, and his observations of other visitors.
#25 - Sam the Sea Cow
Season 10 - Episode 3 - Aired 10/7/1992
LeVar goes to Florida to help take care of manatee with a crew of marine biology experts. He gets to feed a baby manatee, and assists in returning a rehabilitated manatee back to the ocean. Jason Robards reads the feature story of a true tale about a young manatee named Sam whose curiosity caused him to get stuck in drain pipe, and how he was rescued and returned to the sea.