In a gathering of friends, the writer was honored by colleagues and artists who find in the pages of his work charming stories, narrated with a peculiar wit but with a certain fidelity to historical figures and events.

  “The 1930s were wonderful in our history, and what moves me most is that men like Ruben Martinez Villena, Julio Antonio Mella, and Antonio Guiteras, all young and brilliant, did not die of natural causes,” the author told Prensa Latina exclusively.

   “They cannot be remembered in a mournful way,” he asserted, “so I invent a different life for them, and it is their desire to laugh that they build for us.”  

His intention with the novel is for people to read it and laugh, especially at this time, “because laughter is what will take us somewhere else.”

   The presentation was given by Cuban poet and essayist Julio Moracen, a friend of the writer, who shared with the audience the merits this literary work offers the reader, available in print at the event.

  The jury of the 2025 Italo Calvino Novel Prize highlighted the bold postmodern treatment of historical fiction and remarkable linguistic virtuosity.   

Following this initial presentation, a photographic exhibition honoring Italo Calvino was inaugurated in the Villena Room of the UNEAC (National Union of Writers and Artists of Cuba), showcasing the renowned writer at different stages of his life.

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