National Book Lovers Day is celebrated on 9 August every year. The reader in us aspires for the power and importance of books.A book is one of the media for recording information in the form of writing or images.Books play a significant role in our life .History is replete with examples of great persons inspired by books. How thankful Gandhi ji was to Henry Polak whom he met in a vegetarian restaurant in South Africa in March 1904 to discover the book 'UNTO THIS LAST'! This made a great impact on Gandhi's philosophy. World's great scriptures like Bhagwad Gita, Bible, Guru Granth Sahib are the books for all times .Milton, the great English poet described such books as 'the life blood of a master spirit '.The mutilated body of the great war hero,the winner of Param Vir Chakar Major Somnath Sharma was identified by the pocket edition of the Bhagwad Gita which he used to keep in his pocket. Sunita Williams, an astronaut of Indian heritage,who remained in space for 195 days took Bhagwad Gita and an idol of Lord Ganesh into space with her.This shows the power of books we have in our mind . Books develop critical thinking skills. They expand our universe beyond time and space.Books give us new ideas and help us to lead a better life .Without books we will find ourselves in a primitive world devoid of the grace of civilization. Muslim invaders in India devastated and plundered temples and libraries mainly for two reasons.First to shatter the faith of the Hindus and secondly to destroy the rich cultural heritage of India .Islamic fanatic Bakhtiyar Khilji is said to have burnt 9 million books at Nalanda university in 1193 A D . We must develop the habit of reading good books .among students in schools, colleges and universities .It will help them in so many ways .It will play a quintessential role in their lives.It will introduce them to the world of imagination .They will be able to know about the unvisited world.It is a form of free entertainment with a good exercise of the brain .Reading improves concentration and reduces stress.Reading books help us to learn new things in life .It also boosts our memory and intelligence. Let us make it a habit to keep the company of books because they are never failing friends..