World Book & Copyright Day is an annual event, organized by UNESCO. Its purpose is to celebrate books, the legal framework which protects authors (copyright), and all those involved in the book industry including libraries, publishers, and booksellers.
Through World Book & Copyright Day, UNESCO is championing not only creativity, but also diversity and equal access to knowledge. They explain that “books allow us to learn and to keep ourselves informed. They also entertain us and help us to understand the world, while offering a window into otherness”. UNESCO supports the publication of Indigenous and regional languages.
These principles align with the university’s values to be authentic, adventurous, responsible, creative, and collaborative, and also with the university’s EDI commitments and with the Library’s EDI commitment to improving the diversity of our collections.
There are lots of ways to join in the celebrations including:
#ReadingHour. From 7pm to 8pm on 23rd April, people all across the UK will concurrently engage in reading activities for World Book Night's Reading Hour
Borrow an e-book or audio book from Libby. As a member of Loughborough University, you have access to the Libby leisure reading app. Why not take this opportunity to try reading something different. To celebrate World Book & Copyright Day we have curated a list of great books from around the world which have been translated into English. Or you may like to follow a book recommendation from Loughborough students. And don’t miss our collection of books about books and reading.
Borrow a paperback book from the leisure reading collection on level 4 of the Pilkington Library or pick up your next read from the fiction book swap in the LU London Library (outside room 2.05).
You can learn more about World Book & Copyright Day, including why it is celebrated on 23rd April, on UNESCO’s dedicated website. Finally, don’t forget the Library's copyright web-pages for a wealth of information about copyright and how it applies in the university setting as well as the monthly Copyright Blog written by the Library’s very own copyright expert, Cristina Rusu.