Lm4,000 worth of books donated to Public Library

The National Book Council yesterday donated Lm4,000 worth of books to the Central Public Library.

Around 1,000 books are to be enjoyed by the Maltese at the national library. These were books that did well in the last two editions of the National Book Prize - both by established publishers and self-published books.

Dr Gorg Mallia, chairman of the National Book Council, presented the books to Mr Philip Borg, director of libraries, in the presence of Dr Louis Galea, Minister for Education, Youth and Employment. Mr Borg thanked the council and emphasised the need for more activities to help libraries with their work.

In a speech, Dr Galea praised the initiatives being taken by the council in different areas and encouraged the council to keep on taking the book into local communities.

He explained how this was his aim when he set up the council, to help the book remain alive, even in a world dominated by the electronic media.

Dr Mallia added that there were projects in hand to take this up, mentioning a number of projects that the council was working on, together with a number of committees, covering many sectors in Maltese society.

The council's very latest initiative - Take a book with you to the beach - in favour of summer reading was also launched during yesterday's book presentation.