Eduardo Palomares Calderón

SANTIAGO DE CUBA.— Organizing the 20th International Book Fair in16 cities throughout the island, at a time of limited material and financial resources, was described by Culture Minister Abel Prieto Jiménez, member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party, as an eloquent example of the will of the country’s leadership to preserve the cultural event of greatest breadth and popular participation in the nation.

Closing this touring fiesta of reading in Santiago de Cuba, Prieto highlighted as the most memorable moment of this fair the exceptional meeting of Fidel and invited artists and intellectuals.

Reaffirming the people’s interest in reading, Zuleica Romay, president of the Cuban Book Institute, reported that, in just 28 days, 1.7 million books were sold and around 2.25 million people visited the different exhibition sites.

She also announced that the 21st International Book Fair in 2012, will honor Zoila Lapique, recipient of the National Prize for Social Sciences, and Ambrosio Fornet, winner of the National Prize for Literature, and is dedicated to the cultures of Caribbean nations.

In his words of thanks, Dexter E.M. Rose, ambassador of St. Vincent & the Grenadines in Cuba, highlighted the honor that this recognition represents for the peoples of the Caribbean basin, who will be able to assume the will and responsibility involved in the selection, translation, and editing of books by Caribbean authors.

In the same context, Abel Prieto added that, for his defense of Caribbean culture, its traditions, and relations among nations in the region, the Fair is to recall as merited the ideas and works of Joel James, founding director of the Casa del Caribe in Santiago de Cuba.