The National and International Roles of the Center for the Book

摘要

Librarian of Congress James H. Billington has called the Center for the Book “a remarkably effective national, and indeed international, catalyst for promoting books, reading, literacy and libraries and for encouraging scholarly research about the role of books and print culture in our society.”1 Over the course of more than thirty years the Center has played a pivotal national role in these distinct but complementary areas of activity and study. Today through its state center network the Center’s influence reaches into every state, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands; moreover, the Center for the Book concept has spread to South Africa, Russia, and other nations around the world. Within the Library of Congress the Center is well known for its sponsorship of book talks, its key role in the National Book Festival, and its cooperative programs with other library offices as well as with other institutions in the United States and abroad.