LeVar Burton spent decades teaching kids to love books; his own memoir, out today, is about the father who wasn’t there

For decades, LeVar Burton encouraged children to discover the joy of reading through Reading Rainbow. Now, the beloved television star is sharing a much more personal story of his own. His new memoir, Take My Word for It, arrives today, November 10, and looks back at a childhood shaped by his mother's strength and his father's absence. It also explores how those early experiences stayed with him long after he became famous.

What Happened Between LeVar Burton and His Father

Burton's parents separated when he was 11. After that, he had no contact with his father for years. He eventually reconnected with him about a decade later, after Roots had made him famous. Burton discussed the long estrangement in an interview with AARP. His appearance on PBS's Finding Your Roots also brought attention to the relationship, with host Henry Louis Gates Jr. discussing the distance between Burton and his father.


The memoir, written with Tracey Michae'l Lewis-Giggetts, returns to his upbringing in 1960s Sacramento. At the centre of that story is his mother, a high school English teacher who was the first person in her family to graduate from college.

Burton makes her importance clear in the book: “I am who I am because of my mother. Full stop,” he writes.

How Did His Career Shape His Life

Burton became widely known at 19 for playing Kunta Kinte in the 1977 miniseries Roots. He later hosted Reading Rainbow for 23 years and played Geordi La Forge in Star Trek: The Next Generation. He told AARP that his career allowed him to portray the Black experience in America, “from our enslavement to space flight.” He also credits his years on Reading Rainbow with giving him the standing to become a leading voice for literacy.

Has Burton Found Peace With His Past

His relationship with his father remained complicated. Burton said his father passed away recently, adding: “My father passed recently. We had a pretty complex relationship.” He also said, “I felt complete.”

Early reviews have praised the memoir's honesty. Time called it a “compassionate, vulnerable memoir,” while Kirkus Reviews described it as “a disarmingly candid memoir of a lifelong project of personal growth.” The information is taken from Mogaz and Parade.