by Raimundo Urrechaga
HAVANA, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- Patricia Penones and Javier Diaz are a young Cuban couple who have a passion for China, its culture and history.
As they visited the 27th edition of Havana's International Book Fair, they came across Chinese President Xi Jinping's book, "The Governance of China," and bought it in order to learn about his ideas for the nation's present and future.
Right at the entrance of the sales stand, where very few copies of texts translated into Spanish are left, Cubans can find Xi's books.
Among them are two volumes of "Xi Jinping: the Governance of China" and others related to the leader.
In these texts, Xi expresses his interpretation of socialism with Chinese characteristics through articles, speeches and different public appearances over the years.
This contribution is deeply appreciated by Cubans seeking to learn about China's socio-economic development, its reform and opening up process and sustained growth as a nation through Xi's vision and perspectives.
"In addition to learning about government issues, its structure and policies, the book is a way to know about the genuine China, the true story of its people," Diaz told Xinhua.
Diaz, who works for Cuba's state enterprise of translators and interpreters, said reading the book will give him a better understanding of present-day China and its vision for the future.
"There are many Cubans interested in this literature because Xi talks about his experiences. His speeches and ideas can help readers better understand what the Chinese government has done in terms of its policies and governance," he said.
"We also have our socialism with Cuban characteristics and learning from China would be great because they have had a valuable experience in developing their system," Penones, a young translator and tour guide, told Xinhua.
The young couple bought the first volume of Xi's "The Governance of China" in Spanish and the second volume in Mandarin to help them raise their knowledge of the Chinese language.
Penones studied Mandarin at Anhui University in China between 2009 and 2011, while Diaz did so at Beijing International Studies University from 2006 to 2008.
Diaz told Xinhua that Xi's books and ideas can contribute a lot to Cuba, which is currently transforming its political and economic system.
"We are talking about a person who made the effort from when he was young to get where he is today. I think that is the spirit that we need as Cubans because, with that essence, we will move forward," he said.
The first volume of "Xi Jinping: The Governance of China," was published in 2014. So far, the book has been translated into 24 languages around the world.
The articles in the book are arranged in 18 topics, of which there are 79 speeches, talks, interviews, notes and letters by the Chinese president between 2012 and 2014.
To complement these articles, 45 photos of the president at work and in his daily life bring readers closer to the Chinese leader.
The second volume consists of 99 of Xi's speeches, conversations, instructions and letters, as well as 29 photos of the Chinese president between 2014 and 2017.
Published in November of last year in Mandarin and English, the new volume is currently being translated into other languages, including French, Russian and Spanish.
So far, its sales have exceeded 13 million copies around the world and the book was among the 50 favorite books of the Chinese public in 2017, announced Lu Cairong, vice president of China Foreign Languages Publishing Administration, at the Havana Book Fair.
