Detail

`April 23 has been declared by UNESCO as World Book and Copyright Day in honor of the great literary works and authors of the world. `You can read about Germany through Goethe, learn about England through Shakespeare, and experience far-off Latin America through Marques.` Anyone who ventures into reading Faust by Goethe will come away with a wealth of knowled ? about Germany and feel its soul and culture Books are therefore not only a means of transmitting and preserving knowledge but the best way in which we can all move beyond our own lives and understand the cultural traditions of countries all over the world. The participants at the twenty-second plenary meeting of UNESCO on November 15, 1995, set April 23 as the `World Book and Copyright Day`s with a view to awaken the public to the pleasures of reading books and to pay tribute to the many authors who worked for the social and cultural advancement of humanity. The first World Book and Copyright Day was in 1996. April 23 was declared as the `World Book and Copyright Day`s because Shakespeare, the author of Hamlet and OthelloCervantes, the author of Don QuixoteNabokov, who wrote Lolita, and Vega, who is famous for his History of Peru were either born or passed away on this symbolic day. As only one World Book and Copyright Day has passed so far, it is not yet well recognized or widely observed and therefore cannot be established as a global red-letter day. It is expected, ? that greater interest and participation ? people from all walks of life will lead to making the day an important occasion. The MIC adopted the `World Book and Copyright Day`s as the theme of the 1997 stamp design contest and invited designers from all over the world to join in the prize contest for the best design. The work depicting `a book, a pen, and a globe` by Jeon Chong-kwan, an art director, was selected from among a total of 282 works entered including 45 from overseas to grace this commemorative stamp. `