Veteran communist Fidel Castro has launched his memoirs in the Cuban capital, Havana. The book, which shines a light on the early life of the leader of the Cuban Revolution, is tipped to become a bestseller.

The book, titled Fidel Castro Ruz: Guerrilla of Time, contains around 1,000 pages of stories from the former Cuban president’s childhood up to December 1958, the eve the Cuban Revolution.

The two-volume book is laid out in the form of a dialogue between Fidel Castro and journalist Katiuska Blanco.

Fidel Castro, 85, rarely appears in public. The world has not seen him since the closing session of the Communist Party Congress in April last year. Yet he was present throughout the launch of the book, which reportedly lasted over six hours. The event was attended by Cuban Culture Minister Abel Prieto and Director of the Cuban Writers' Union Miguel Barnet.

In a speech at the event, Fidel Castro spoke of his love of current affairs, saying he read “hundreds of news stories every day.” He praised Latin American students for "standing up for their right to free education" and underlined his concern over the situation in Venezuela.