Today we celebrate National Book Lovers Day. If you ever wanted to escape the dull drums or madness of life, picking up a good book is the purest form of escapism. They can take you to any time, place, or realm.  In honor of National Book Lovers Day August 9, let us put away our smartphones, pull out a good book, and simply read. Something that may sound archaic to some. And if you don’t like to read—like some people, I know—or can’t read an audiobook will suffice.

From clay tablets to today’s eBooks, literature has played a crucial role in preserving cultures, educating the masses, and telling stories. Thanks to Johannes Gutenberg’s 15th-century printing press, not just royalty, monks, or landed gentry, but anyone could read and own books. Today, we have the opportunity to join a book club or re-read a favorite novel because National Book Lovers Day reminds us of these things.

Literature is timeless and that is why National Book Lovers Day celebrates it so.

A Little Trivia. Before the invention of paper, books came in the form of tablets, scrolls, and engravings. The ancient scrolls dating back to the 4th century B.C. are considered the first ‘books,’ but by today’s definition, the oldest surviving compiled book is “The Diamond Sutra” which was published in China on May 11, 868. Paper was invented in China in the 1st century A.D. Hardback books ruled the market at the start of the 20th century, but from 1937 onwards, paperbacks rose in popularity. When the computer and technology age emerged the first book sold in CD format in the 1980s was “The New Grolier Electronic Encyclopedia.”

What is your favorite book and why?

When you find the opportunity to pull out that favorite book… Don’t forget to grab your favorite drink—sit back, relax, disappear into imagination, and reconnect to your humanity, Happy reading to all of you book lovers out there!

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