Since our founding in August 2013, Cuba Libro has initiated and grown donation programs throughout Havana; in 2016, we expanded these programs to other provinces and continually meet with possible collaborators and conduct outreach to identify new recipients. We're very proud of our donation strategy - based on distributing the most needed items to the most vulnerable - and are constantly evolving so that we can identify and reach the underserved both in our immediate community and beyond.

You can follow your donations, our initiatives and how we're growing community on our Facebook and Instagram pages @cubalibrohavana.

When the COVID pandemic began sweeping the world, we took the decision, collectively, to close voluntarily in order to protect the health of our team and community. Nevertheless, thanks to the unflagging support from our local and global community, our donation program of sorely needed medicines, vitamins, and personal hygiene products continued throughout our closure, we never missed a month of rent to our friends and neighbors who own the property, and we were able to maintain minimum salaries for the entire, 7-person, all-Cuban team.  

The joy emanating from our corner of Calle 24 & 19 wafted far and wide when we were able to re-open in late 2020, re-affirming our conviction that having a cozy, verdant, fun and economical place to (safely) gather is essential to communal health and well-being. Whether you left behind a good book, bought a coffee for one of our medical professionals or sponsored the #dayofnodrama, wrote in to cheer us on, recharged a phone, shared our link and vision or participated in our virtual competition, your support is felt. We believe everyone has something to contribute and it doesn’t have to be money.

 

Donation of gloves, prenatal and multi-vitamins, NSAIDs and more to Family Doctor's Office #9, Playa, Havana
Donation of gloves, prenatal & multivitamins, NSAIDs & more, Family Doctor's Office #9, Playa, Havana (May 2020)

In addition to our material and financial support for different projects and populations, we have gifted over 30,000 condoms as part of our commitment to public health since initiating our free condom program in 2014. That same year, we began supporting pregnant women and new moms with donations of prenatal vitamins, folic acid, diapers, and more. This robust program has continued through pandemics, politics and hurricanes and to date, we have helped welcome 30 new babies into our world with direct support for pregnant moms. The economic situation in Cuba remains fragile, with severe shortages of many basic items, and we are working harder than ever to ensure donations reach the people who need them. When disaster strikes -- whether a tornado, hurricane, building collapse, house fire or industrial explosion -- Cuba Libro is there to donate; these are real examples of post-disaster victim assistance we have provided in just the past few years. 

Cuba Libro is also a regular patron and supporter of the arts. To date we have hosted scores of free concerts, DJ sessions and art openings; donated museum-quality art paper to half a dozen (and counting!) local artists; donated several musical instruments, strings, reeds and other musical materials; and provided props for the teleplay Muerto por Carol (2020) and the independent documentary Los Cercanos Dias del Amor (2021). 

For a list of the most-needed material donations, please scroll down and consider donating on your next trip!

None of this would be possible without the dedicated work - day in, day out - of our wonderful team and generous donations by people like you. If you are interested in learning about the various ways to support us, whether through financial or material support, or in other ways, please get in touch. 

At the bottom of this page you'll find a list of books our community has come to us seeking - feel free to bring down a couple or three on your next trip (especially at least 1 copy of 100 Places in Cuba Every Woman Should Go, written by Cuba Libro founder C Gorry; we do not have this title even in our reference section).

Are you coming to Cuba? Want to support our community programming? There are many ways to do so - please drop us an email and we can give you some options. 

So to all of you: THANK YOU and stay healthy.  

For a list of books we are actively trying to curate, please scroll down and consider bringing down one or three on your next trip!

Primary School Donation
Distributing books at Tomas Romay Primary School

 

Beyond Havana: Donation in Tortuguera, Guantánamo

MATERIAL DONATIONS

Cubans across the island are suffering due to the combination of even stricter US sanctions, the global recession resulting from the COVID pandemic and a coordinated, politicized media campaign demonizing the island and advising people not to travel there. This suffering touches each and every Cuban -- regardless of politics, race, religion, economic status, gender or sexual orientation (although some groups are more adversely affected than others). We work closely with family doctors, elementary school teachers, administrators of orphanages, animal activists, the LGBTQA+ community and others to understand what materials they need most and how we can satisfy that need.  

July 2024: Please note we are not accepting general clothing donations at this time. Due to the current transportation and energy crisis and the small size of our team, we are not able to pick up donations. If you are making a donation, please assure you have the time, energy and resources to bring them to Cuba Libro. Gracias!!

Drop off: Calle 24, corner 19, VedadoPhone: 7 830 5205 (landline); 5 197 1567 (cellular).

Opening Hours: Tues-Sat 10am-8pm; Sun 11am-8pm

As of July 2024, the items most needed by our local and regional community include:

Wheelchairs (we have multiple requests from high-risk vulnerable people and polyclinics)

Mosquito nets

Pregnancy tests

Plan B (the “day after” pill)

Condoms

COVID tests

Hand fans

Grapefruit seed extract (for intestinal problems)

Flashlights

Candles

Lighters

Solar powered radios, flashlights, fans

Diapers (adult and infants)

Powdered milk

Prenatal vitamins with iron

Folic acid (including high dosage for patients undergoing radiation)

Burn cream

Pulse oximeters

Blood pressure monitors

Pediatric nasal catheters (cannulas)

IV ports – adult and pediatric

Infrared Vein Finder (for pediatric cancer ward)

Intraosseous trocars

Syringes – all sizes

Stethoscopes

Scalpels

Forceps

Sutures

Gauze (sterile)

Cotton and alcohol

Arthritis cream

Lidocaine patches (or similar)

Asthma inhalers

Thermometers (in CELSIUS, not digital: batteries are hard to find/expensive)

Collagen

Omega 3

Calcium with Vitamin D

Vitamin D combo Vitamin K

Vitamin A

Vitamin C

Injectable vitamin B complex

Tetracycline

Amoxicillin

Multivitamins (including for seniors)

LGBTQI+ flags, ribbons, buttons, etc

Bike lights

Energy/protein bars

Nuts and other high protein snacks

Electrolyte powders

Instant soups

Reams of paper

 

 

Cardiac and diabetic medicines needed by Cuba Libro Community – July 2024

Hidroclorotiazida

One Touch diabetic test strips

Glucometer with test strips

Clopidogrel

Carvedilol

Metformina (1000 or 500mg)

Enalapril

Glibenclamida

Nifedipino

Neurobion inyectable, 10 ampules

Centrum – vit B1, B6 y B12 oral

 

BOOK DONATIONS

Almost all of our books are donated, meaning you can touch many lives by giving a book. We prioritize curation of those books our community comes to us seeking; we conduct several surveys throughout the year to identify specific titles. By stocking these titles/genres/authors, we remain relevant and responsive to our community. If you'd like information on how to send us books through the mail, please drop us an email.

We have teamed up with @Redverdecuba, a network of over 300 environmental activists and initiatives in Havana and beyond, to start building coalitions and cooperation for a healthier, cleaner Cuba. Among other support, Cuba Libro has established a Green Reference Library (Biblioteca Verde) as a permanent resource for ecological research and learning. These titles are the ones that have been requested through April 2024. These can be in English or Spanish.

GREEN REFERENCE LIBRARY

Silent Spring/Primavera Silenciosa (Rachel Carson)

Árboles de Cuba (Johannes Bisse)

La revolución de una brizna de la paja (Masanobu Fukuoka)

A Designers Manual (Bill Mollison)

Reef Creature Identification and Reef Fish Identification (Paul Human)

Corales Pétreos de Cuba (Nereida Martínez Estalella & Vasil Zlatarski)

Guía para Trepadores de Árboles (S.J. Lilly)

Guía de Estudio para la Certificación del Arbolista (https://www.isahispana.com/treecare/publications)

ANSI Z133.1 Requisitos de Seguridad – para Operaciones de Arboricultura (https://www.isahispana.com/treecare/publications)

Mejores Prácticas de Manejo: Poda de Árboles (https://www.isahispana.com/treecare/publications)

Mejores prácticas de Manejo: Poda de Árboles que Interfieren con Servicios Públicos (https://www.isahispana.com/treecare/publications)

Our most recent readers' survey in the first quarter of 2024 revealed the titles people are after include:

Anything by Dodie Bellamy

Anything by David Foster Wallace

Anything by Colleen Hoover

Anything by Terrence McKenna

Anything by Tolkien

Anything by Thomas Friedman

Anything by Becky Albertalli

Anything by Casey McQuiston

Anything by Adam Silvera

Anything by Charles Bukowski

Anything by Gillian Flynn

Anything by Ozamu Dazai

Anything by Leonardo Padura

Anything by bell hooks

Anything by Emma Scott

Anything by Stuart Gibbs

Cuba and Its Music, Ned Sublette

Old Man and the Sea, E Hemingway

Lord of the Flies, William Golding

Animal Farm, George Orwell

1984, George Orwell

The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus, Christopher Marlowe

Farenheit 451, Ray Bradbury

Wuthering Heights, Emily Bronte

Severance, Ling Ma

The Taking of Jake Livingston, Ryan Douglass

All for the Game trilogy, Nora Sakavic

The Song of Achilles, Madeline Miller

When Marnie was There, Joan G. Robinson

Howl’s Moving Castle, Diana Wynne Jones

Cuba: 50 Years of Playing American Football, Christopher A Perez

Harry Potter (all volumes), JK Rowling

Architecture of Information, Louis Rosenfeld & Peter Morville

My Policeman, Bethan Roberts

House of the Spirits, Isabel Allende

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, Taylor Jenkins Reid

Conversations with Friends, Sally Rooney

Beautiful World, Where, Sally Rooney

Normal People, Sally Rooney

One of us is Next, Karen M McManus

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

Thirteen Reasons Why, Jay Asher

Looking for Alaska, John Green

Boy Parts, Eliza Clark

This is Pleasure, Mary Gaitskill

Trick Mirror, Jia Tolentino

The Bell Jar, Sylvia Plath

What is a Teen like for a Girl, Paris Lees

Play it as it Lays, Joan Didion

Just Kids, Patti Smith

Bluets, Maggie Nelson

Exciting Times, Naoise Dolan

A Little Life, Hanya Yanagihara

The Uncensored Picture of Dorian Gray, Oscar Wilde

To Killl a Mockingbird, Harper Lee

Giovanni’s Room, James Baldwin

Frankenstein, Mary Shelley

The Picture of Dorian Grey, Oscar Wilde

The Neverending Story, Michael Ende

Call me by Your Name, André Aciman

You, Caroline Kepnes

Moby Dick, Herman Melville

Diary of Anne Frank, Anne Frank

A Promised Land (Vols 1 & 2), Barack Obama

Silent Spring, Rachel Carson

A New Earth, Eckhart Tolle

Shogun, James Clavell

Chronicles of Narnia, CS Lewis

A Brief History of Time, Stephen Hawking

Man’s Search for Meaning, Viktor Frankl

Homo Deus, Yuval Noah Harari

Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls, Francesca Cavallo

I Dissent: RBG Makes her Mark, Debbie Levy

The Lacuna, Barbara Kingsolver

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, Barbara Kingsolver

The Outermost House, Henry Beston

The Overstory, Richard Powers

White Fragility, Robin DiAngelo

The Fault in Our Stars, John Green

Games of Thrones Trilogy, George R R Martin

Hunger Games Trilogy, Susan Collins

Becoming, Michelle Obama

It, Stephen King

Letters from Cuba, Ruth Behar

Cuba Hot & Cold, Tom Miller

The Creative Spark, Michael Shapiro

Havana Noir, Achy Obejas

Fire & Fury, Michael Gross

Treat us Like Dogs and We Will Become Wolves, Carolyn Chute

Feminasty, Erin Gibson

Cubanissimo, Cristina Garcia (ed)

Kill ‘Em and Leave, James McBride

Beartown, Fredrich Bachman

A Man Called Ove, Fredrich Bachman

The Last Day of Our Fathers, Joel Dicker

The Psychoanalysis of Fire, Gaston Bacelard

The Second Sex, Simone de Beauvoir

Pale Fire, Nabokov

The 5AM Club, Robin Sharma

Saved by the Sea, David Helvarg

The White and the Black, Harold Pintner

Cuban Revolution in America, Teishan Latner

Anything by Thomas Pynchon

American Gods, Neil Gaiman

The Art of Not Giving a F*ck, Mark Manson

Everything is F*cked, Mark Manson

To Have and Have Another, Philip Greene

Havana Without Makeup, Herman Portocarero

300 Reasons to Love Havana, Heidi Hollinger

Cuba in Mind, Maria Finn Dominguez

100 Places in Cuba Every Woman Should Go, Conner Gorry

Cuba by Bike, Cassandra Brooklyn

The Gift of Fear: Survival Signals that Protect Us from Violence, Gavin de Becker

Anything by John McPhee

Anything by Henry Miller

Anything by Anais Nin

The Kon-Tiki Expedition, Thor Heyerdahl

A Field Guide to Getting Lost, Rebecca Solnit

Wanderlust: A History of Walking, Rebecca Solnit

Men Explain Things to Me, Rebecca Solnit

Lonely Planet, Cuba

500 Hidden Secrets in Havana

The Education of an Architect, John Hejduk

José Marti: Cuban Apostole: A Dialogue (2013), Cintio Vitier & Daisaku Ikeda

Anything by José Martí

This Wheel’s on Fire, Levon Helm

The Complete Beatles Songs, Steve Turner (this is hugely popular)

Anything by JD Salinger

Black Hole, Charles Burus

The Complete Persepolis, Marjane Satrapi

Dracula, Mike Mignola

Ronin, Frank Miller

Batman: Year One, Frank Miller

Kingdom Come, Mark Waid & Alex Ross

V for Vendetta, Alan Moore

Watchmen, Alan Moore

Portnoy’s Complaint, Philip Roth

Negroes with Guns, Robert Williams

A Contemporary Cuba Reader, Philip Brenner et al, eds

Cuba: A New History, Richard Gott

Drown, Junot Diaz

The Brief Wonderous Life of Oscar Wao, Junot Diaz

This is How You Lose Her, Junot Diaz

The Poet, Ralph Waldo Emerson

Nature, Ralph Waldo Emerson

Where the Boys Are, Van Gosse

Prose Contribution to the Cuban Revolution, Allen Ginsberg

Planet Cuba, Rachel Price

Back Channel to Cuba, Peter Kornbluh

Listen Yankee!: Why Cuba Matters, Tom Hayden

Double Life of Deacon Brody, R.L. Stevenson

Time Out Film Guide

Rolling Stone, Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll

Anything by Naomi Klein

Sartre on Cuba, Sartre

Talking to Fidel, Peter Kornbluh

World Guide, New Internationalist

Adios Muchachos, Daniel Chavarria

Jimmy Corrigan, Chris Ware

Memorias del Fuego, Eduardo Galeano

Cocktail Time in Cuba, Basil Woon

Buena Vista in the Club, Geoff Baker

What Everyone Should Know about Cuba, Julia Sweig

Cuba/Havana Guidebooks

Cubana: Contemporary Fiction by Cuban Women, Mirta Yáñez (ed)

Open Your Eyes and Soar: Cuban Women Writing Now, Mary G. Berg, ed

Havana is a Really Big City, Sarah Cooper, ed

Disconnect, Nancy Alonso

Ophelias, Aida Bahr

A Corner of the World, Mylene Fernández Pintado

The Beautiful and the Damned, F Scott Fitzgerald

The Man Who Loved Dogs, Leonardo Padura

Havana Red, (or Blue or Black) Leonardo Padura

Vital Signs, Pedro de Jesus

New Short Fiction from Cuba,  J. Loss & E. Whitfield, eds

Cuba on the Edge, M. Berg, P. Carmell, &  A. Fountain, eds

Cuba: A Traveler’s Literary Companion, A.L. Bardach, ed

Cuban Revelations: Behind the Scenes in Havana, Marc Frank

Cuban Economic and Social Development: Policy Reforms and Challenges in the 21st Century, Jorge Dominguez, ed

Best Women’s Travel Writing, ed by Lavinia Spalding

Anything by  Paco Ignacio Taibo II (especially his non fiction; in English, please)

Underworld, Don Delillo

Mao II, Don Delillo

Great Jones Street, Don Delillo

White Noise, Don Delillo

Auto/Biographies (of any type; Cubans love them)

Cookbooks

 

SELECTION OF WHERE WE'VE DONATED -- 2016-first quarter, 2024 (Havana unless otherwise noted) 

Academia de Idiomas, Nuevo Vedado

Animal Health Clinic, Quinta de los Molinos

Bienestar Animal Cuba (BAC) Habana

CDR #8, Quivicán (Mayabeque)

Challenger Escambray Mountain Bike Competition (Sancti Spiritus)

Centro Memorial Martin Luther King, Jr

Cooperativa Jesús Menéndez (Artemisa)

Copa de Viñales Mountain Bike Event, Proyecto Jibaro

Cotorro Animal Rescue

Department of Neuro Opthalmology, Pando Ferrer Eye Hospital

Department of Neurosurgery and ICU, Calixto García Hospital

Dog Protectors, Necrópolis Cristóbal Colón

Ebenezer Baptist Church

Elementary school children -- Reparto Electrico, Boyeros & Tortuguilla (Guantanamo)

Escuela Especial Dora Alonso (125 children with autism)

Escuela Especial Retoños Martianos (150 developmentally-disabled children, Varadero)

Escuela de Idiomas Extranjeras, Plaza

Escuela Primaria Tomas Romay Chacon

Escuela Primaria Juan Triana

Escuela Primaria La Ceiba del Agua (Artemisa)

Escuela de Secundaria Básica, Rebelión de Vegueros, Boyeros

Escuela Solidaridad con Panama (181 physically disabled children)

Family Doctor’s offices #9 & #10 Playa

Federación de Mujeres Cubanas, Bloque 6, Plaza de la Revolucion

Guanabacoa Orphanage

Guanabo Orphanage

Habana Vieja Musical Instrument Repair Shop

Hogar de Ancianos (Quivicán, Mayabeque)

Hospital Hermanos Ameijeras

Hospital Pediatrico William Soler, Oncology Ward

Hospital Provincial Leopoldito Martinez Rodriguez (San José de Las Lajas, Mayabeque)

INDER Outdoor Sports Complex, 23 y B

Inmates, Ceiba 5 min security prison & Combinado del Este max security prison

La Liga Echeverría Baseball Club

Museo Nacional del Cafe

National Network of Trans Women/CENESEX

Proyecto Armonia 

Proyecto Golden Kids

Red Verde Cuba

El Rincón del Cristo, Finca Agroecológica 

Rural Nursery School (Paso Quemado, Pinar del Río)

Rural Nursery School (San Diego de los Banos,  Artemisa)

Rural Primary School (La Güira, Artemisa)

Rural Primary School and family doctor’s office (Paso Real, Pinar del Rio)

Sexto Congreso Housing Shelter

Therapeutic Clowns of Cuba

Vets sin Nombre (free spay & neuter clinic)

Virida Renace

Disaster Donations:

Working with our immediate and larger community, we mobilize material and financial, as well as logistical support when disaster strikes. In 2022, Cuba Libro made direct donations to first responders working to contain and extinguish the supertanker fire in Matanzas. In 2020, we made emergency donations to seven families who lost everything in a home fire in 10 de Octubre Municipality and additional emergency donations to the 30 families who lost their homes in the Centro Habana building collapse later that year. After the unprecedented 2019 tornado ripped through Havana, Cuba Libro made donations to four of the hardest hit neighborhoods (Regla, Berroa, El Roble, 10 de Oct), as well as serving as a donation collection center and transportation dispatch for over 50 volunteers. Working with the Centro Memorial Martin Luther King, Jr., Cuba Libro was able to send donations to victims of Hurricane Irma (2017) in Júcaro and Chambas, Ciego de Avila province. 

SELECTION OF INITIATIVES & CULTURAL EVENTS -- 2016-2023

Banned Book Week

Blind Date with a Book Week

Book launch: Cycling in Cuba with author Cassandra Brooklyn

Book launch: The Legacy Letters with author Carew Papritz

Book launch: Made in Cuba with authors Molly Mandel and James Burke

Book launch: Waking in Havana with author Elena Schwolsky-Fitch

Children's Drawing Workshop, with Centro Experimental de Artes Visuales

Cine Nordico LGBTQA+, with Embajada de Noruega

Coffee provision, 11th Annual Harley-Davidson Rally (Varadero)

Coffee provision, Opening National Coffee Museum

COVID-19 compliant booksales, with home delivery by bicycle

Entrepreneur Festival, with Proyecto Armonia

Free drinks on International Day of No Drama (#daynodrama2020)

Free drinks for medical professionals and students on Dia de Medicina Latinoamericano

Inclusion in Mapa Ambiental de la Habana (https://www.ipscuba.net/multimedia/mapa-ambiental-de-la-habana/)

Introduced 100% Cuban produced reusable and environmentally-friendly bamboo straws

Peer-to-peer English tutoring pairing US semester study abroad students with Cubans

Virtual competition Cuba Libro en Da House (recipe competition during COVID pandemic that resulted in new drinks The Durán and The Fauci)

Volunteer Coastal Cleanup, with Acuario Nacional and The Ocean Foundation (USA)

Volunteer Farmwork, Finca Tungasuk (Artemisa)

Volunteer Trail Cleanup and Maintanence, El Rincon de Cristo, Finca Agroecologica

 

 

Saved the life of "Tokio," a neighborhood dog (pictured below) who was abandoned when his owner was incarcerated. Anemic, malnourished and full of parasites, we provided treatment, housing, food and water. Today he's back to full health.

This friendly guy collapsed on our sidewalk, anemic, fullnof parasites and malnourished. Today hes back to full health

 

 

 

REceiving donations
Receiving donations from Boston youth at Cuba Libro, 2018
Escuela Rural, Guira, 2018
Frisbees! A big hit in Guira, 2018
Rural School, Guira, 2018
Rural School donation, Guira, 2018

 

 

Guanabacoa Orphanage donation
Smiles! At Guanabacoa orphanage donation day.
volunteer and donation el rincon del cirsto
Volunteer clean up and donations, El Rincon del Cristo, 2018
Volunteer trail clean up & donation
Volunteer and donation day, El Rincon del Cristo, 2018
Prenatal vitamin recipients
Mama D & Lucas, recipients of prenatal vitamins, 2018

 

 

English-language book donation to Tomas Romay Chacon elementary school
Donation to the English-language classroom at Tomas Romay Chacon Elementary School, 2016

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

we thrive on book donations
Cuba Libro friends, community and staff (and Toby!) receiving a recent book donation