First lady hails value of reading, Dr. Seuss

[March 03, 2010]  WASHINGTON (AP) -- First lady Michelle Obama is celebrating Dr. Seuss' birthday by reading "The Cat in the Hat" to a group of children wearing red-and-white-striped hats like the book's main character.

Mrs. Obama helped kick off the National Education Association's annual "Read Across America" project Tuesday at the Library of Congress.

The event marked the day that Dr. Seuss would have turned 106.

The first lady told elementary school students from Washington and Arlington, Va., that her daughters, Sasha and Malia, read every night because they are allowed to stay up 30 minutes later if they do so.

[Associated Press; By NATASHA METZLER]

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