World Book and Copyright Day is celebrated on 23 April
Rights — di Lorenzo Brenna
The initiative was created to promote reading and the publication of books, as well as the protection of intellectual property through copyright.
World Book and Copyright Day is celebrated on 23 April
The initiative was created to promote reading and the publication of books, as well as the protection of intellectual property through copyright.
In an age of cultural flattening and philosophical and creative aridity, books are the best source of understanding reality. Literature has an immense power: simple conventional symbols combined in a certain way, like an alchemical formula, give rise to surprising results, capable of generating revolutions no less powerful than those brought about by science. As Frank Kafka once said, "a book must be an axe to break the frozen seas inside our soul."
Take, for example, Silent Spring, the 1962 book by Rachel Carson. This essay managed to change the course of history, sparking the birth of a powerful environmental movement. "This book is undeniable proof of how the power of an idea can be far greater than the power of politicians," wrote Al Gore, former Vice President of the United States and Nobel Peace Prize winner.
On 23 April, World Book and Copyright Day is celebrated, proclaimed by the general conference of Unesco. The choice of date is symbolic and highly evocative: it was on this very date, in 1616, that three giants of world literature — Cervantes, Shakespeare and Garcilaso Inca de la Vega — died.
The aim of the Day, established in 1996, is to promote reading, the publication of books and the protection of intellectual property through copyright. The message is directed primarily at young people who, through the written word, can retrace the deeds of the women and men who have contributed to the social and cultural progress of humanity.
"Literacy is the gateway to knowledge, indispensable for the self-esteem and empowerment of the individual. Books, in all their forms, play an essential role," declared Irina Bokova, Director-General of Unesco.
For World Book and Copyright Day 2019, Sharjah, in the United Arab Emirates, was named World Book Capital. Each year, Unesco and the international organisations representing the three main sectors of the book industry — publishers, booksellers and libraries — decide which city to award this role to for one year, in recognition of the quality of its programmes to promote the spread of books and encourage reading.
Come aboard the Pequod and brave the stormy sea alongside Captain Ahab, attempt the perfect crime in the company of Rodion Romanovich Raskolnikov, rebel against authority with Guy Montag, or accept the challenge of matching wits with Plutarch in the field of dialectic. Open your mind to that magical universe made of paper and ink.