I can’t live without books! – InternationalLiteracyDay

*Featured Image from  – http://www.unesco.org – I don’t own it.*

Well, it is that time of year again. International Literacy Day provides such an important message. It states how important reading is and of course, how great books are.

The World Literacy Foundation states that:

In 1965, UNESCO declared September 8 to be International Literacy Day. Since this proclamation, schools, communities and organisations have united around the world on this day to raise awareness in the hope that it will enable increased accessibility to education in developing nations.

I have always been passionate about books and words… hence why I’m studying English & American Literatures at university. I guess that books provide a different view of the world and a platform for education.

Literacy is a foundation to build a more sustainable future for all. – UNESCO Director-General

Since I was young, I can remember reading so many books. Though, I was fortunate enough to have access to words and texts to read. There are so many people around the world who have never read because they don’t have the funds for such an education.

As I’ve grown older, I’ve realised how important books are. They tell us about the past. They tell us what we are as humans. They tell us how society is developing.

I guess a great example of this has to be 1984 by George Orwell. A book that highlighted the danger of totalitarianism when it was on the rise. Orwell produced a political stance in that book and wrote what he believed. It then erupted into the society and caused controversy. This made us (not me in particular) talk about what was happening around us. And I believe that is another part of books that is spectacular.

When a book, with a strong message, appears on our bookshelves… it gets us talking. I believe a recent one is probably ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’… my views on that are very well known, but I was one of the people talking about it. These books have us debating, crying, laughing, frustrated, and educated.

Books can change the world if you let them. Words are powerful if you use them.

If you have the power to read… if you’re lucky enough to access books, then please pick one up and read it. The world changes around us, and reading is far more important than you believe. You need to understand how the world was shaped, what happens in society and what we need to do to change the world around us.

Literature teaches us history… so we don’t repeat it.

I’ll finish in the good words of Mark Twain.

“The man who does not read has no advantage over the man who cannot read.”

 

See you next time! – Rachel ❤

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