The launching of 25 titles by and about Fidel, in honor of his upcoming 90th birthday, was described by Zuleica Romay Guerra, as a gift from the Cuban people, during the closing in Santiago of the country’s 25th International Book Fair, which began in Havana in February.

Romay Guerra said that book launchings and activities to celebrate Fidel’s birthday will continue throughout the year, and noted that Fair events had also focused on the 100th anniversary of the birth of Santiago writer José Soler Puig, and the 130th anniversary of the abolition of slavery.

In an evaluation of the Fair, Romay reported that a total of 522 new releases and 2,563,337 copies were available, fewer than last year, given production problems. She noted that almost two million visits to the Fair were recorded nationally, and highlighted increased sales in Sancti Spíritus, as well as improvements to fairgrounds in Santiago de Cuba, Holguín, Villa Clara and Pinar del Río.