Fidel Castro presents 2-volume memoir

In this April 19, 2011 file photo, Cuba's Fidel Castro attends the 6th Communist Party Congress in Havana, Cuba. (AP)

HAVANA -- Fidel Castro has made a rare appearance to present a two-volume memoir.

Communist Party newspaper Granma says the encounter with the former leader lasted more than six hours at a Havana convention center.

Images on state television Saturday showed a smiling, animated Castro speaking to the audience and wearing a dark track suit over a blue button-up shirt.

Audio of him speaking was not broadcast.

Granma said the book is called "Guerrilla of Time." It spans nearly 1,000 pages and covers Castro's first memories from childhood until December 1958, the eve of the triumph of the Cuban Revolution.

Castro retired in 2008 following an illness and rarely appears in public these days. He showed up at a Communist Party congress last April.