世界节假日博览 第78期:世界图书与版权日

World Book and Copyright Day is on the 23rd of April every year. It is also called International Day of the Book or World Book Days. UNESCO started it in 1995 to promote reading, publishing and to raise awareness of and protect copyright. There are several theories to explain why it falls on April 23. One is because William Shakespeare was born and died on this day. Another is because of a festival held since 1923 in Spain to honor the death of Spanish writer Cervantes. Part of Spain's festivities include a two-day ‘readathon’ of Cervantes'book Don Quixote. UNESCO wants to encourage young people in particular to discover the unique pleasures of reading and respect the authors who have helped shape and change our world.
每年的4月23日为世界图书与版权日。它又被称之为“世界图书日”。该节日由联合国教科文组织发起，旨在倡导图书，出版以及版权保护。至于为什么设立在那天有许多种说法。有说那天既是莎翁的诞辰，又是莎翁的忌日。还有人认为是为了纪念作家塞万提斯忌日，自1923年起，西班牙就一直举行纪念活动。活动包括两天的“阅读竞赛”，比赛内容是阅读《唐·吉诃德》。教科文组织希望激发人们，特别是年轻人的读书欲望，发现读书的乐趣，尊重那些曾改变世界的人物。


World Book Day UK began in 1998. Then Prime Minster Tony Blair gave several million schoolchildren a special 1 pound World Book Day token they could use to buy any book in any bookshop in the UK. What happens in your country on World Book Day? What do you think should happen? It' fantastic that we have a day to celebrate books and authors. They have certainly enriched our lives, from childhood to the day we can no longer read. People say that everyone has a book in them. What would you like to write a book about? Most authors who write their first book do so thinking no one will ever read it. Many publishers were not interested in J.K Rowling's first story about a boy called Harry Potter. Didn't he become famous?
英国“世界读书日”开始于1998年。首相托尼·布莱尔为数百万小学生分发了1英镑“图书日”代金券，他们能在英国任意书店购买任意图书。你的国家如何庆祝“世界读书日”？你认为应该如何举办？我们能为图书和作家创立纪念日，这太美妙了。从儿时到老年，它们充实了我们的生活。所有人都拥有书籍。如果让你写书，你会写些什么？对于绝大多数作家来说，他们在创作处女作时都曾想过这本书或许会无人问津。许多出版社对J.K.罗琳的“哈利·波特”故事不感冒。然而他没有成功吗？