National Book Week 2012

INDUSTRY RELEASE

1 August 2012

NATIONAL BOOK WEEK 2012

National Book Week will be celebrated from 3 - 8 September 2012 across the

country. Schools, libraries, municipalities and provinces will all be hosting

diverse activities to highlight the fun of reading and books.

With its call to action of “Read a Book, Share a Book”, this South African

Book Development Council (SABDC) initiative, in association with the

Department of Arts and Culture, aims to promote the joy of reading among

South Africans of all ages.

The main event will be hosted in the Eastern Cape this year from the 6 - 8

September in Port Elizabeth (now known as Nelson Mandela Bay). The event

will take place at the Red Location Precinct in New Brighton.

The Book Industry and the general public are urged to help foster a love of

reading among all South Africans, contributing to a higher level of literacy

while opening up new worlds and possibilities with the power of the written

word.

The textbook crisis is very topical and National Book Week offers an ideal

opportunity to demonstrate the value of the South African Book Sector in

developing our country. It is an opportunity for us to engage with the public

and show our commitment to increasing reading and accessibility to books,

while at the same time creating awareness of our indispensible role in society.

National Book Week is fast becoming a premier reading event and a

corporate social investment tool for the book sector.