Jumpin' into reading

Nevada, Mo. -- Maxaroo, a kangaroo owned by Amy Muller, Butler, hops her way through the City/County Community Center, Nevada, in a special appearance hosted by the Nevada Public Library attended by more than 200 people of all ages. Maxaroo's appearance was delayed by about a half hour because she escaped her home. Muller located her shortly, but while local folks anticipated her arrival, youth librarian Martha Bledsoe introduced a variety of books about kangaroos available at the library, and shared a legend of how the kangaroo got its pouch. According to Bledsoe's tale, the story involved a joey that was prone to running off and was hard to keep track of, the mother and a wombat. The mother showed great kindness to the wombat, who turned out to be the Creator of All Things in disguise. As a reward for her kindness, the "wombat" gives the mother kangaroo something unique -- her very own pouch to help her keep track of the wayward joey. Muller said she frequently takes Maxaroo to visit classrooms, where crowds are smaller, which works better for Maxaroo than dealing with large crowds. The library had expected a much smaller crowd, but the turnout had forced the event to relocate to the community center. For more photos of Maxaroo with her new Nevada friends, visit www.nevadadailymail.com.