Teaching @PineTree: World Book Day

Showing posts with label World Book Day. Show all posts

Wednesday, April 23, 2014

World Book and Copyright Day 2014

April 23 marks the anniversary of the birth or death of a range of well-known writers, including Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, Maurice Druon, Inca Garcilaso de la Vega, Haldor Kiljan Laxness, Manuel Mejía Vallejo, Vladimir Nabokov, Josep Pla and William Shakespeare. For this reason, UNESCO's General Conference chose this date to pay tribute to books, the authors who wrote them, and the copyright laws that protect them.

A range of activities to promote reading and the cultural aspects of books are held all over the world. Many of these emphasize international cooperation or friendships between countries. Events include: relay readings of books and plays; the distribution of bookmarks; the announcement of the winners of literary competitions; and actions to promote the understanding of laws on copyright and the protection of authors' intellectual property.

In some years, the Children's and Young People's Literature in the Service of Tolerance is awarded. This is a prize for novels, collections of short stories or picture books that promote tolerance, peace, mutual understanding and respect for other peoples and cultures. There are two categories: one for books aimed at children aged up to 12 years; and one for those aimed at young people aged 13 to 18 years.

Source: timeanddate.com (abridged)

Picture via Google Images

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

National Shakespeare Day

photo credit: Lincolnian (Brian)
via photopin cc

Many fans and enthusiasts of William Shakespeare, who was one of England’s greatest poets and dramatists, celebrate National Shakespeare Day, also known as Shakespeare Day, on April 23 each year. April 23 is also St George’s Day and the United Nations’ World Book and Copyright Day, which was a natural choice to pay a worldwide tribute to writers such as Shakespeare.

Special pageants are held at Stratford-upon-Avon in Warwickshire, where Shakespeare was born and where thousands of tourists go each year to see his plays performed. The bells of Holy Trinity Church ring out and the Mayor of Stratford leads a procession there to lay flowers on Shakespeare’s grave. The procession includes bands, civic dignitaries, costumed actors and actresses, Morris dancers, and the staff and pupils of some local schools. In some schools, regular lessons are set aside for students to learn about the great playwright and poet, and his sonnets, narrative poems and plays. Enthusiasts and fans, including the British Shakespeare Company, have campaigned for Parliament in the United Kingdom to officially recognize national Shakespeare Day.

His work includes comedies, such as The Taming of the Shrew and A Midsummer Night’s Dream, as well as tragedies such as King Lear, Hamlet and Romeo and Juliet. Much of his work has been seen in modern-day theatre, the ballet and in modern films. His plays have been translated in many different languages across the world.

Picture via
Shakespeare Glove theatre images

The Globe Theatre was a theatre in London associated with William Shakespeare. It was built in 1599 but was later destroyed by fire. A second Globe Theatre was rebuilt on the same site in 1614 and closed in 1642. A modern reconstruction of the theatre, 'Shakespeare’s Globe', is currently located in London. It consists of The Globe Theatre with a professional theatre company playing a summer season of plays; Globe Education, which works with students of all ages; and a Shakespeare’s Globe Exhibition. Other symbols identified with Shakespeare include: an image of the poet on a postage stamp; and symbols from his plays, such as a rose (Romeo and Juliet), a human skull (Hamlet), and blood, ghosts and witches (Macbeth).

Source: TimeandDate.com (abridged)

Thursday, March 07, 2013

World Book Day (Uk & Ireland)

World Book Day logo

World Book Day was designated by UNESCO as a worldwide celebration of books and reading, and is marked in over 100 countries around the globe. The origins of the day we now celebrate in the UK and Ireland come from Catalonia, where roses and books were given as gifts to loved ones on St George's Day – a tradition started over 90 years ago. World Book Day is a partnership of publishers, booksellers and interested parties who work together to promote books and reading for the personal enrichment and enjoyment of all. A main aim of World Book Day in the UK and Ireland is to encourage children to explore the pleasures of books and reading by providing them with the opportunity to have a book of their own. To know more about the events planned for this venue, just visit the website www.worldbookday.com.

Source: Education Scotland (abridged and adapted)

World Book Night logo

The UK and Ireland also celebrate on April 23rd the World Book Night. The World Book Night is a celebration of reading and books as well, which sees tens of thousands of passionate volunteers gift specially chosen and printed WBN books in their communities to share their love of reading. Each year 20,000 volunteers are recruited to hand out 20 copies of their favourite book from a list to members of their community who don’t regularly read. World Book Night is about giving books and encouraging reading in those who don’t regularly do so. But it is also about people, communities and connections, about reaching out to others and touching lives in the simplest of ways, through the sharing of stories. Source: WorldBookNight.Org

So as to finish this post in greatness, here follows the reference to Edinburgh, the world's first UNESCO City of Literature, pioneer in an international network of UNESCO Creative Cities. This title bestows international recognition on Edinburgh and Scotland as a world centre for literature and literary activity, a city brimming with fantastic libraries, bookshops and authors, and packed with places of literary significance.

Source: cityofliterature.com (abridged)