First Lady Advocates Literacy
Associated Press
Mar 07, 2008
US first lady Laura Bush warns of perils of not reading
NEW YORK -- In remarks Wednesday to U.S. publishing executives, first lady Laura Bush called books her "greatest love affair" and warned that a "nation that does not read for itself cannot think for itself."
Bush, a former librarian, said she worried that many Americans had never heard of fictional characters such as Fyodor Dostoyevsky's Karamazov brothers and "an intriguing man named Gatsby," created by F. Scott Fitzgerald.
"A nation that does not read for itself cannot think for itself, and a nation that cannot think for itself risks losing both its identity and its freedom," said Bush, who called the passion for reading "learned behavior that should be taught at home and at schools."
Bush - whose advocacy of books and literacy have made her popular in the publishing industry - spoke at the annual meeting of the Association of American Publishers, held at the Yale Club in midtown Manhattan. The first lady and daughter Jenna Bush have co-authored a children's book, "Read All About It!" It will be published in April by HarperCollins.
----
Sound Off...What do you think? Join the discussion
Copyright 2012 by Associated Press
