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December 23, 1999
Contact: Guy Lamolinara (202) 707-9217

Arkansas Center for the Book Approved

The Library of Congress has approved a proposal from the Arkansas State Library for the creation of an Arkansas Center for the Book, which will be affiliated with the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress.

"We're very pleased to welcome Arkansas to our growing network of state centers for the book," said Center for the Book Director John Y. Cole. "Arkansas has a rich literary heritage that needs to be publicized and promoted throughout the state and the nation."

"Our proposal received support from the governor, the state legislature, and the state Library Board," said State Librarian John A. Murphey Jr. "We've been working on the idea for several years, and I am delighted to see the Arkansas Center for the Book finally come into existence. We look forward to enhancing the love of books and reading among Arkansans as well as increasing public awareness and appreciation of the contributions of our enthusiastic Arkansas community of the book."

Arkansas Center for the Book projects will include a directory of the state's book community, cosponsorship of the Letters About Literature project and sponsorship of a statewide reading program for children and of a publishers' exhibit of children's books.

For information about the Arkansas Center for the Book, contact Jane Thompson, Arkansas State Library, 1 Capitol Mall, Little Rock, AR 72201, telephone 501-682-5288, fax 501-682-1693.

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PR 99-191
12/22/99
ISSN 0731-3527