October 10th marked "National Pajama Party Day"-to help raise awareness for the new BookPALS initiative. Operating under the auspices of the Screen Actor's Guild, BookPALS is a non-profit organization whose mission is to stimulate children's interest in reading, and encourage parents and caregivers to read to their children so they will want to read on their own.

Seinfeld star, Julia Louis Dreyfus joined Steve and the gang at the popular kids' TV show "Blue's Clues" to read stories while tucked up in a giant bed.

"I'm thrilled to be associated with BookPALS in helping to promote literacy for children," said Dreyfus. "I'm a big fan of Steve and Blue, and had a great time guest-starring on Blue's Clues."

Talk show host, Rosie O'Donnell, has also jumped onto the literacy bandwagon. Rosie announced the creation of a nationwide children's literacy initiative that is intended to promote kids' interest in books and serve as a fundraising platform for her "For All Kids Foundation," a children's-oriented charity.

The initiative, a creative collaboration between Ms.O'Donnell and eToys, is known as "Rosie's Readers." The project will be a regular feature on "The Rosie O'Donnell Show" and the eToys Web site. The first book chosen by Rosie was the latest title in the wildly popular Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, by the British author J.K. Rowling. Her books currently occupy the top three spots on The New York Times list of best-selling hardcover fiction titles. But Rosie's choice of reading material may not go down so well in South Carolina where parents are demanding the Potter books be withdrawn from schools because they contain descriptions of death and violence. One concerned parent, who addressed the State Board of Education, said, "The books have a serious tone of death, hate, lack of respect and sheer evil." The Board is still considering whether the books are suitable or not for inclusion in school libraries.