Happy World Book Day!

April 23, 2013 admin 0

Seventeen years ago, UNESCO declared April 23rd World Book and Copyright Day and every year seems to bring exciting new ways to celebrate the occasion. I know that, in this space, I’m preaching to the choir and talking to the already converted. We like books, right? No secret there. We, all of us, like books a lot. But the UNESCO initiative offers us a basket into which we may place our ideas for sharing not […]

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Get Ready for Banned Books Week

September 16, 2010 admin 0

Regular readers of January Magazine know that we love Banned Books Week around here. It’s well known that there’s nothing like a good banning to boost interest in a book and, quite often, sales. During Banned Book Week, though, the whole thing gets more intense. From the American Library Association’s Banned Books Week page: Intellectual freedom — the freedom to access information and express ideas, even if the information and ideas might be considered unorthodox […]

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International Literacy Day 2010

September 8, 2010 admin 0

Today is International Literacy Day: a date worth noting. Wikipedia reminds us that “September 8 was proclaimed International Literacy Day by UNESCO on November 17, 1965. It was first celebrated in 1966. Its aim is to highlight the importance of literacy to individuals, communities and societies. On International Literacy Day each year, UNESCO reminds the international community of the status of literacy and adult learning globally. Celebrations take place around the world.” For 2010, UNESCO […]

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Driven to Read

April 22, 2010 admin 0

As a strong advocate of literacy and bibliotherapy, even I have to admit to having limits as this story from the BBC indicates: A bus driver has been suspended after a passenger filmed him apparently reading while driving along a dual carriageway in Birmingham. The passenger, who wishes to remain anonymous, filmed the National Express West Midlands driver steering with his elbows while holding a small book. They said they took the footage after getting […]

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Obamas Will Preside Over National Book Festival

May 28, 2009 admin 0

The First Couple will be honorary chairs of the National Book Festival, to be held in Washington, D.C., at the National Mall on Saturday, September 26th. Sponsored by the Library of Congress, this will be the event’s ninth year celebrating “the joys of reading and lifelong literacy,” according to an event press release. “We are delighted that the President and Mrs. Obama are committed to bringing this inspirational event to people of all ages nationwide,” […]

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Reading Between the Lies

March 5, 2009 admin 0

Some people lie about what they have read and, according to Stephen Adams at The Telegraph, it’s more than just a few: Under the cover of an anonymous questionnaire, two-thirds of people admitted to fibbing about having read a book. Surprisingly, given its brevity and pace, 1984 heads the top 10 list of books we falsely claim to have read. The rest of the list is largely predictable, stuffed full of weighty volumes most have […]

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Book Celebrations Should Go On Forever

February 26, 2009 admin 0

Wow: do I ever feel like a dope. Library Lovers Month is nearly over and it just this minute sunk in that the future is now. On the one hand, though, I have a good excuse: I love libraries all the time. On the other, well… even though there’s only a few days left in February, you still have time to party. Here are a few links to help out with that. And on a […]

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Reading on the Rise says Patchett

January 19, 2009 admin 4

Bestselling novelist Ann Patchett (Bel Canto, Run) shares her talented pen with the Wall Street Journal in an essay that that helps celebrate something we’ve been hearing whispers about: reading fiction for fun is definitely on the rise. Says Patchett: There will be those who attribute the rise in reading to our current decline of cash, and if that is actually the case I would at least be able to think I forfeited my retirement […]

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International Literacy Day

September 8, 2008 admin 0

Today, September 8th, is International Literacy Day, a date that’s being marked in different ways by different groups but — in all cases — it is a celebration as well as a lament. For some, it is an acknowledgement of how far we’ve come on the road to literacy, while realizing how far there still is to go. From the United Nations’ site: Literacy is a cause for celebration since there are now close to […]