Award-winning librarian and ‘Reading Rainbow’ host Mychal Threets to serve as 2026 National Library Week honorary chair

CHICAGO – Award-winning librarian, author, and new host of the children’s program “Reading Rainbow” Mychal Threets will serve as Honorary Chair of the American Library Association’s National Library Week, April 19-25, 2026, a weeklong celebration of the important role libraries and library workers play in schools and communities across the U.S.

"I love libraries enthusiastically every week! To serve as Honorary Chair for National Library Week takes that enthusiasm to a whole new level,” Threets said. “Celebrating libraries, thanking library workers, visiting libraries is how I find my joy. There are so many library kids and library grown-ups who have yet to fully embrace their library joy, and I am so excited for them! When they enter the world of libraries and stories, I am confident they will find not only their library joy but their courage to believe in their own story and maybe even share it with others."

The 68^th annual National Library Week theme, coinciding with ALA’s sesquicentennial, is “Find Your Joy,” an invitation for people of all backgrounds to explore and discover what sparks joy in them at the library. The theme amplifies a message that is ever-present in Threets’ recurring viral videos about the innumerable ways people can find joy in the library, and in his debut picture book, I’m So Happy You’re Here: A Celebration of Library Joy, publishing on February 3, 2026.

“We are overjoyed to have Mychal Threets—a beloved member of our library community—serve as Honorary Chair of National Library Week 2026,” said American Library Association President Sam Helmick. “Mychal represents the best of us, and his mission to spread library joy resonates deeply at a pivotal time for our nation’s libraries and their communities. As ALA celebrates its 150^th anniversary, we can think of no better ambassador to inspire people everywhere to visit and support their libraries.”

Threets is a librarian, mental health advocate, and the library’s number one fan (according to himself, admittedly). He was raised in his local library as a home-school kid and got his first library card at the age of five. Threets served in his first library job as a library shelver at Solano County Library – the library he grew up in – and worked his way up to become supervising librarian of that very same library. He is open about his mental health in hopes that talking about it will help others in their mental health journey, and he is adamant about encouraging people to believe him when he says he’s happy they are here.

Threets considers it an honor to the library people who raised him that he is a recipient of the 2024 I Love My Librarian Award from the American Library Association, one of School Library Journal’s 2024 Movers and Shakers, one of TIME Magazine’s 2024 Next Generation Leaders, a 2024 winner of The Webby Awards for social impact, and one of the 2025 TIME Magazine’s inaugural list of 100 creators. He is the author of I’m So Happy You’re Here: A Celebration of Library Joy, published by Random House Children’s Books and illustrated by Lorraine Nam. He is proud to be Resident Librarian for PBS and PBS Kids. He will never believe that he serves as the host of the revival of Reading Rainbow.

National Library Week posters and bookmarks featuring Nam’s illustrations, as well as a new READ poster featuring Threets, are available for purchase in the ALA store. In the coming months, ALA will provide libraries with free graphics and tools to help them celebrate National Library Week.

First observed in 1958, National Library Week is an annual observance by the American Library Association and libraries across the country each April. National Library Week celebrations include Right to Read Day, April 20; National Library Workers Day, April 21; National Library Outreach Day, April 22; Take Action for Libraries Day, April 23; and the celebration of School Library Month throughout April.

About the American Library Association 
The American Library Association is the largest non-partisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to America’s libraries. The ALA mission is to empower and advocate for all libraries and library workers to ensure equitable access to information for all. For nearly 150 years, ALA has provided resources for information professionals to transform their communities through essential programs and services. For more information, visit www.ala.org.