The 27th International Book Fair at the Autonomous University of Baja California (UABC) opens Wednesday, April 16, in Mexicali with a new addition: the first Salón de la Poesía Joven, a young poetry salon featuring emerging Baja California poets reading original work. The salon runs through Monday, April 21, alongside the fair’s usual schedule of author talks, panel discussions, book vendors, and live music.
FIL UABC, as the fair is known, is free to attend. It takes place on the UABC campus in Mexicali, the capital of Baja California state. The event draws tens of thousands of visitors each spring and ranks as one of the largest literary gatherings on the peninsula.
FIL UABC Has Run for 27 Consecutive Years in Mexicali
UABC launched its book fair in 1999 as a campus event for students and faculty. Over nearly three decades, it has grown into a six-day cultural festival that attracts publishers, authors, and performers from across Mexico and Latin America. Past editions have hosted marquee Mexican writers, independent press showcases, and children’s literacy workshops.
The fair operates under UABC’s extension and cultural diffusion division. Unlike commercial book fairs, FIL UABC charges no admission. That open-door model has made it a fixture for Mexicali families, university students, and cross-border visitors from Calexico and the Imperial Valley. The UABC campus sits roughly ten minutes south of the Calexico East port of entry on Boulevard Benito Juárez.
Mexicali’s literary scene punches above its weight for a desert border city of roughly one million people. The city has produced poets like Gabriel Trujillo Muñoz and fiction writers like Rosina Conde. UABC’s own creative writing programs and the state arts council, ICBC (the Institute of Culture of Baja California), have supported emerging writers through grants and residencies for years. But until now, FIL UABC had no dedicated space for young poets to present their work in progress.
Six Days of Readings by Emerging Baja California Poets
The Salón de la Poesía Joven fills that gap. According to the fair’s organizers, the salon will feature young poets from across Baja California state sharing literary projects and reading original poetry. The word “joven” (young) signals a focus on emerging voices rather than established names. Readings are scheduled across the six days of the fair, from April 16 through April 21.
Details on individual poets and session times had not been published as of mid-April. FIL UABC typically releases its full programming schedule on the UABC cultural extension website and through social media channels in the days before the fair opens. Past editions have posted daily schedules at information booths on the fairgrounds as well.
The salon fits a broader pattern in Mexican literary festivals. Mexico City’s FIL del Zócalo and the massive Guadalajara International Book Fair (FIL Guadalajara) have both expanded dedicated poetry programming over the past decade. Baja California’s own Festival Entijuanarte in Tijuana and the Rosarito literary gatherings have also given stage time to spoken word and poetry. FIL UABC’s new salon brings that format to Mexicali’s fairgrounds for the first time.
Yami Safdie Headlines the Closing Night Concert on April 21
Beyond the poetry salon, the fair’s closing night on Monday, April 21, features a headline concert by Yami Safdie. The Argentine-born, Mexico-based singer-songwriter has built a following across Latin America with acoustic pop and folk-influenced tracks. Her appearance anchors the fair’s music programming, which in past years has included regional and indie acts performing on an outdoor stage.
The concert, like the rest of the fair, is free. Evening performances at FIL UABC typically draw large crowds, so arriving early is practical advice for anyone crossing the border from Calexico or driving in from San Felipe or the San Luis Río Colorado corridor.
FIL UABC runs April 16 through 21 on the UABC Mexicali campus. Full schedules and poet lineups are expected on UABC’s official channels before opening day. The poetry salon and Yami Safdie concert were first reported by Zeta Tijuana.