Oscar Winners Not the Only Ones Taking a Bow Sunday

Hollywood celebrities weren’t the only ones walking the red carpet Sunday.

The line of Plainfield readers waiting for glamour shots snaked around the , part of an Academy Awards party celebrating the end of the library's six-week reading program. Nearly 1,166 readers participated. 

Chris Garbin, a third-grader at Grand Prairie Elementary School, was one of them and looking to get some press because of it. 

“I’m in an interview with the news right now,” he informed a playmate, who had the audacity to interrupt him as he spoke to a reporter.

Garbin was talking about the “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” book series, which are among his favorites of the many titles he's read.

 ZonCom Productions Inc. took the photos. Readers picked up props, hopped into the photo booth and headed home with a strip of pictures. Everywhere you looked were Golden Oscar statues and stars. Free pizza and popcorn were served.

Competition was hot for life-size cut-out figures of celebrities that kids could win in an Academy Award “Guess the Winners contest.”  

Kylie Martin, 3, had her heart set on taking heartthrob Justin Bieber home, while Garbin had his finger crossed that he’d get a date with actress Selena Gomez. 

Shannan Martin, Kylie’s mom, said the winter reading program even got Kylie’s 18-month-old baby brother Kallan interested in books. 

“We always read at home anyway, but the incentive of the party and the prizes made it even more fun for the kids,” Martin said.