A book is a link between the past and the future. It is a bridgebetween generations and across cultures. It is a force forcreating and sharing wisdom and knowledge.

　　Frank Kafka once said, “a book must be an ice-axe to break theseas frozen inside our soul.”

　　A window onto our inner lives, books are also the doorway tomutual respect and understanding between people, across allboundaries and differences. Coming in all forms, books embody the diversity of human ingenuity,giving shape to the wealth of human experience, expressing the search for meaning andexpression that all women and men share, that drive all societies forward. Books help weavehumanity together as a single family, holding a past in common, a history and heritage, to craft adestiny that is shared, where all voices are heard in the great chorus of human aspiration.

　　This is what we celebrate on World Book and Copyright Day, in partnership with the InternationalPublishers Association, the International Booksellers Federation and the International Federationof Library Associations and Institutions -- the power of books to nurture creativity and advancedialogue between women and men of all cultures. I thank Wroclaw, Poland, as the 2016 WorldBook Capital, for its commitment to spreading this message across the globe.

　　This has never been so important at a time when culture is under attack, when freedom ofexpression is threatened, when diversity is challenged by rising intolerance. In turbulent times,books embody the human capacity to conjure up worlds of reality and imagination and expressthem in voices of understanding, dialogue and tolerance. They are symbols of hope and dialoguethat we must cherish and defend.

　　William Shakespeare died on 23 April, 1616, preceded by only one day by Cervantes. On this day,I call upon all of UNESCO’s partners to share the message that books are a force to counter, whatShakespeare called, “the common curse of mankind -- folly and ignorance.”

　　没有什么像一本书一样。

　　书连接着过去与未来。书在代际之间和不同文化之间架起一座桥梁。书是创造并分享智慧与知识的力量。

　　弗兰克·卡夫卡曾说过，“一本书必须是一把冰镐，劈开我们灵魂中冰封的海洋。”

　　书是我们内心生活的一扇窗，也是超越一切边界和差异，通往人民之间相互尊重与理解的一扇门。形式各异的图书体现了人类创造力的多样性，显示了人类经验之丰富，表达了对所有人共享的、推动一切社会向前发展的意涵和表现形式的探索。书籍帮助我们人类走到一起，成为一家人，拥有共同的过去、历史和遗产，建设共同的未来-在人类愿望的大合唱中可以听到所有人声音的未来。

　　这就是我们通过与国际出版商协会、国际书商联盟和国际图书馆协会联合会合作，在世界图书和版权日所庆祝的——图书培育创造性和推动各种文化背景的人们之间开展对话的力量。我感谢作为2016年世界图书之都的波兰弗罗茨瓦夫承诺向全球传播这一讯息。

　　在一个文化遭到攻击、表达自由受到威胁并且日益高涨的不容忍对多样性构成挑战的时刻，这一讯息具有空前重要的意义。在动荡时期，图书体现了人类反映现实世界与想象世界并用理解、对话和宽容之声表现这些世界的能力。图书是我们必须珍视和维护的希望与对话的象征。

　　威廉·莎士比亚在1616年4月23日去世，就比塞万提斯晚一天。在这一天，我呼吁教科文组织的所有合作伙伴分享一个信息：书是对抗莎士比亚所说的“人类共同的诅咒——愚蠢和无知”的力量。

（编辑：何莹莹）