Forward by Julius K. Nyerere: Literacy is a tool. To be useful it has to be used. And using it to the full involves reading books. Without a public library system it is not possible for anyone to get access to all the different kinds of books that he or she may want to read or consult as he develops his mind and his ability. And the poorer the person the more essential it is that a library exists near at hand. For poor nations a library service is vital. To develop an educational system and to say you cannot afford a National Library Service is not very sensible. Schools and adult classes can do no more than provide the tools of learning, and an understanding that the world's knowledge can be tapped by sharing ideas through discussion, through listening to the radio, and through books. Books provide the means through which we can learn from the world's past experience and from people we shall never meet even if they come from our own country. Thus although the whole truth is not contained in the statement "The true University is a collection of books", yet books can provide information and ideas and provoke our own thought - which is the basis for all human development. The two volumes of this book "Books Build Nations" are about the development of libraries in Africa and the part these have played and could play in our nation-building. The two Tanzanian librarians who wrote the book are contributing to the development of our people and our country by the facts they present and the ideas they put forward. This book can help all those concerned with, or about, national education.