...And it was spectacular! We saw close to 2,000 people make their way to the Phoenix Library's Burton Barr Central Library for our second go at the largest reading celebration in Phoenix!

We brought Love to Read A-Z to the library in partnership with Friends of the Phoenix Public Library and offered a huge lineup of family-friendly activities centered on our absolute, die hard, forever growing and always nurtured love of reading. We wanted to share the joys of every aspect of being a kid and picking up a book and the beautiful centrally located Burton Barr was the perfect place to do it.

The first 500 attendees received tote bags filled with goodies galore. Everyone also got an event pass that they had to stamp at least six activity stations to enter and win an Xbox 360 Kinect Bundle or Nook Color, which will soon feature library books. From there it was a free-for-all fun time with so many options it made our head spin! Families could choose to get their face painted, take a ride on the space ship train, sit down and enjoy a gourmet dog from Epic Hot Dogs, get dolled up at the Bookmans photo booth, sit in on story time, join in on a puppet show with the Arizona Puppet Theater, partake in crafts, jump in the musical parade led by Councilman Michael Nowakowski and so much more! We also invited our good friend Curious George from PBS to hang out and take photos with the kids alongside BookBreath and Book Man. You can view photos from the event on our Flickr. In addition to the activities, we hosted 13 local non-profit organizations and their tables to share information about everything from visiting your local park to making your own movie.

It was clear that we got everyone revved up to be at the library and to give books a big hug for taking us on adventures and entertaining us while never asking anything in return. Special thanks to our Councilman Nowakowski for making a great speech, our co-sponsors, Friends of the Phoenix Public Library and thanks to the Burton Barr Central Library for letting us party with the community on your first floor. If you missed this event, mark your calendars because the 3rd Annual Love to Read A-Z is already on its way, scheduled for Saturday, February 23. Until then, keep on keeping on that LOVE TO READ A-Z!