Ronald Reagan

“ For us in America, that love by tradition and experience has been a decisive force in our existence and development as a free people. We proclaimed it so for all eternity in the First Amendment to our Constitution, and we proved it so at the dawn of the American Revolution when we chose as our foremost weapon the printing press.
During National Book Week, we pause to recall all that books have had to do not only with the founding and building of this land, but also with the transmission of those ideas and practical achievements that form the basis of our culture. ”

“ Anyone who doubts the power or permanence of books need only look today at countries around the world where the mere composition, printing, binding, and distribution of a book is a prosecutable act of defiance against the state. ”

“ We can all resolve during National Book Week to take stock of our own reading practices and our attentiveness to sharing books with others, especially the young. Technological change and specialized publications-electronic books, braille and large-print media for the visually impaired, recorded books and other forms-have greatly increased the accessibility of all kinds of literature. Promoting even broader dissemination of book learning, including efforts to achieve 100 percent literacy in our Nation, is the proper concern of all Americans. ”