LeVar Burton Reads

If you grew up watching Reading Rainbow, you already know what LeVar Burton can do with a story. This podcast takes that same magic and gives it an adult upgrade. Each episode features Burton reading a handpicked piece of short fiction -- science fiction, literary fiction, horror, magical realism -- with the kind of vocal performance that makes you forget you're listening to one person sitting in a booth. He doesn't just read; he inhabits these stories, shifting between characters and moods with an ease that most audiobook narrators would envy. The story selection is genuinely excellent. Burton pulls from authors like Octavia Butler, Ray Bradbury, Haruki Murakami, and N.K. Jemisin, but also spotlights emerging writers who deserve a bigger audience. Episodes typically run 20 to 45 minutes depending on the story length, and each one includes a brief introduction where Burton explains why he chose that particular piece. Those intros feel personal and unguarded -- you get the sense he really does love this work. Over 13 seasons and 206 episodes, the show has built a library of short fiction that functions like a curated anthology. It holds a 4.9-star rating with over 17,000 reviews on Apple Podcasts. The 3D audio and soundscape production adds atmosphere without overwhelming the text. Burton's narration remains the centerpiece, and honestly, it's hard to imagine anyone else doing this format as well. The show wrapped its regular run in mid-2024, but with that catalog, new listeners have months of material to work through.